


Whiskey's Effect

by birdie7272



Series: Started With A Kiss [1]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Drunken Shenanigans, M/M, Merthur - Freeform, Romance, Smut, otp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-22
Updated: 2014-01-28
Packaged: 2018-01-09 16:39:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 32,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1148295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/birdie7272/pseuds/birdie7272
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oh, the effects of alcohol. It loosens the tongue...and the lips.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Confession

**Author's Note:**

> Merthur sexy time ;) (the farther you go, the sexier it gets)
> 
> Takes place Season 2 Episode 7 "The Witchfinder"
> 
> Not betaed.
> 
> Thanks for reading :)

Merlin didn't see Arthur coming for him across the room. He had his eyes fixed on Aredian. He was so full of hate for this man he didn't care if the entire court saw him kill him. He would use magic if he had to. Even in front of Uther.

All Merlin could see was red once Gaius was sentenced to death for sorcery. Aredian knew he was lying and so did Merlin.

He was going to kill this man.

"You're a liar!" Merlin screamed on his way to closing his hands around Aredian's throat. He didn't even hear Uther call for the guards. All he knew was that he wanted this man dead. He was caught on impact by a small but otherwise able bodied wall. Merlin tried to rip off the arm of the assumed guard but knew it was useless to fight without his magic. He was not physically strong enough. All he could do was yell, "You're a liar!", again hoping that the someone, anyone in the room understood that he was in fact telling the truth and that this witch-hunter knew nothing.

Merlin glanced down when he realized his feet were no long supporting him. He was not being dragged away by a guard in armor but by Arthur. Reacting, Merlin grabbed on to the muscle that was supporting him -rather- dragging him from the room, hoping Arthur of all people would listen, would at least understand that he was telling the truth. Gaius wasn't the one doing magic.

Arthur knew he had to help Merlin. The guards would throw him in jail if they were the ones escorting him from the court. Maybe he could talk some sense back into Merlin and if he did. Maybe he could even let him see Gaius before his death. The thought made Arthur's heart heavy.

"I'll deal with this" Arthur said leaving the room, dragging Merlin behind. Luckily, he was remarkably light to carry, even while fighting his grip.

Merlin struggled down the corridor pleading with Arthur to let him go. He needed to find a way to save Gaius.

"Stop! Arthur! Let me go!" He repeated himself, struggling but Arthur's arms were too strong. There was no getting free.

When nearing the stairs to go down into the dungeon Arthur got sick of the fight and whipped Merlin around so he would not have to drag or carry him down the stairs. Merlin was stuck with his arm half bent and a stinging pain crept into his shoulder and hand. "Ow! Let me go!", was all Merlin managed to get out before they made it down the bottom of the stairs, stumbling the entire way.

Passing the guards at the bottom Arthur spoke again, "You two, go upstairs. I need some alone time with this one. He's to be taught a proper lesson about manners in the court." The guards left at Arthur's command and the two boys were left completely alone in the dungeons.

When Arthur was sure they were out of hearing range he headed down one corridor of empty cells. When halfway down the hall he threw Merlin's arm out of his grasp. Merlin's pain was finally relieved and all his anger was now directed at the man keeping him from finding a way to protect Gaius. The man who caused him so much pain on the way down there.

Where was here? Merlin was so mad, he wasn't even sure where 'here' was. All he had to go on was Arthur telling two guards to leave so he could learn a 'lesson'. Well his anger was still strong and he wasn't about to take any 'lesson' from Arthur. Free from his grasp his first instinct was to take a swing at Arthur's face.

And miss.

Arthur easily grabbed Merlin's hand and placed it back into its painful position behind his back, this time adding a little more force in order to get Merlin to stay still so he could talk to him. Merlin could feel Arthur's breath on his ear as Arthur got close enough to whisper. No one was around anyway so Merlin didn't see why this was so necessary.

Regardless, Arthur led him, still in their awkward holding position, into one of the many empty cells that had a door open all while whispering; "I know you're upset, I know you're angry. It's alright. I'm not throwing you in jail". Then he threw Merlin, with a little more force than necessary, against the cell wall.

Oh he wasn't was he? Is that what he called that? Not throwing him in jail? Merlin turned around and tried for another go at Arthur's face.

Arthur was too quick for Merlin, the fighter that he was. He had anticipated Merlin would attack again and was able to grab his wrist out of the air and hold it up as Merlin's other hand came sloppily flying at him. He grabbed that wrist too as Merlin tried now to kick Arthur in the shin. Arthur knew it was coming and dogged that one with his leg. Merlin kicked again and Arthur did not doge in time, the toe of Merlin's boot digging into his shin.

Letting out a humph of annoyance and pain, Arthur shoved Merlin's legs against the wall with his own, pinning his arms above him and holding him down with his body. He was just trying to help Merlin. He did not need to keep trying to hurt him. He didn't care how upset he was or how much of a right he had to be, Arthur was starting to get mad.

He had Merlin's wrists pinned high above his head on the hard wall, scraping his knuckles into the stone. His legs ran the length of Merlin's, keeping them flat against the wall and locking his knees so that there would be no more kicking. Merlin struggled to get free, flailing as much as he could under the prince's strong grip, scraping his skin more as he went.

It had clicked in Merlin's mind that they were in fact in one of the dungeon's corridors and that Gaius was in one of these cells. He had to find him. He hadn't seen him since they threw him in the dungeon in the first place, days upon days ago. He wasn't about to let Arthur keep him from seeing him.

"Let me go Arthur, I have to see Gaius!" The menace in his voice could be sensed throughout the room, rebounding off the walls. A splash of his natural-born magic may have added to that mix but Merlin wouldn't dare let that be known.

He tried to use the only body part that was not restrained, his head. He knew it would hurt but it was all that he had left. Clenching his eyes shut in apprehension of the pain he tried to head-butt Arthur, to no avail.

Arthur dogged the blow easily knowing it was Merlin's last option. The urge to call Merlin an idiot crept up on him and just as the word started to bubble up, Merlin took the pause to his advantage and fought back hard, pushing against the wall into Arthur with every bit of force he had.

Arthur struggled to get his position back as the boys bickered.

"Merlin, I-"

Their bodies continued to bump into one another.

"Let me-"

Arthur was stronger but Merlin's use of the wall was helping.

"Merlin, you-"

One huge push and Arthur tackled Merlin to the wall pushing him back the few inches he managed to fight out.

"Stop-"

Merlin pushed back on Arthur's chest who took advantage of the move and grabbed both of Merlin's wrists again. He swept his leg around to the back of Merlin's left knee, causing him to fall backwards and sideways towards the ground. Arthur, in an eloquent move, followed suite, smashing his weight down onto Merlin, causing Merlin's body to smack down into the hard ground beneath, momentarily knocking the wind out of him. Arthur, still having Merlin's wrists, wrangled his arms above his head and pinned them there and, straddling him, he bent his legs so that his feet wrapped in between Merlin's thighs making it so that Merlin could not kick his legs out making him officially immobile.

They were stuck in this precarious position as Arthur yelled, sick of bargaining and sick of the flipping around. "MERLIN!" Patience is a virtue but it was a hard one for Arthur. "Do not make me lock you in here!" Both angry and annoyed, his fingernails biting into Merlin's skin, he tried to catch his breath. He had tried to act calm, understanding what Merlin was going through but he could not tolerate him. The boy drove him up the wall sometimes.

Merlin seemed to physically calm after the combination of pain and the proximity of Arthur's yelling. The proximity was very close indeed. The prince's body needed to be close in order to pin him, their faces were but inches away.

Merlin did not talk, realizing his situation, and waited for Arthur to say something. He relaxed his muscles and let his body sink against the floor.

Arthur stared at him for a few more seconds before relaxing his grip on Merlin's wrists. No blood was drawn but he was sure the marks were visible. While he did relax his grip, he did not let go completely. He was still afraid he would try and attack again, not that that would be easy from his position.

After a few moments of staring down Merlin's vibrant blue eyes, Arthur decided he had indeed calmed down enough to talk. The heartache was shared between both boys. Arthur knew that Merlin was very close with Gaius, much closer than Gaius and himself but Arthur did grow up with him. Gaius had known him since he was a child and he trusted him. It was a shock to learn of his past and a shock to learn that his past had followed him into the present. While Arthur did not hate magic with such a vengeful passion as his father, he did grow up learning to hate it. He just never thought he would have to face it in a friend.

"Now, before you start..." Arthur said watching to make sure Merlin would be calm. "I cannot go against my father's wishes."

"But-"

"The King's decision is final." Arthur's hands tightened into Merlin's wrists both as a warning for him to calm and to let out some of his own anger towards his father.

"Aur-"

"THAT does not mean however that I agree with him." Arthur stared at Merlin, trying to see if he understood what he was trying to say. That he wished he could change it.

"Is there nothing you could do?" Merlin pleaded with Arthur, tears starting to well in his eyes as the anger subsided. A lump in his throat started to form, no matter how much he wanted to stay calm in his vulnerable position. He knew it was just a matter of time before he broke and he kept trying to swallow the lump away.

Arthur stared longer still into Merlin's eyes, noting the tears and the proximity of their faces, he lowered his voice to just above a whisper.

"I'm sorry Merlin, I truly am. I wish there was something I could do but..." Arthur paused at a loss for words. "I trust Gaius...with my life... but last night I found out that this accusation could be true. Gaius had practiced sorcery before and he may have started again." Arthur waited for Merlin to respond. Merlin probably knew of Gaius' past. They had been living together for some time now, they were quite close.

"Are you saying that you believe it's true?  That Gaius is a sorcerer, that he has betrayed the king, that-" Merlin's voice was growing in volume again as the anger started to spike back into his words, nudged on my built as he knew he was being hypocritical in his words. For he himself was betraying the king by practicing magic and he should be the one in Gaius' place. He needed to let Gaius know this. He needed to be the guilty one.  "That he could betray-"

"I'm saying that while hard to believe a-" Arthur interrupted.

"Gaius is innocent." Merlin interrupted him in turn.

"A confession in front of the court is not something that can be taken lightly." Arthur carried on before Merlin could continue. "Gaius admitted his guilt, now there is nothing to do but face the consequences"

"The consequences your father set in place." Merlin spat back angrily. He knew he should not be blaming Arthur but he just wanted him to do something. To understand at least that he should _want_ to do something.

Arthur tried not to show the hurt Merlin had caused in his statement. It wasn't as though he had been the one to set up Gaius' death sentence.

After a moment of silence longer, Arthur sat up, letting Merlin's arms go, taking his feet out from between his thighs and placing them on either side of the slim boy's body.

Merlin let his arms slide to his sides, bending at the elbows. He realized he would be touching Arthur if he let them go all the way so they ended up at strange angles that were more uncomfortable than when Arthur was pinning him. So instead he decided to slide his hands on top of his chest and inspect the red streaks of blood forming from the scratches caused by the floor and by Arthur's nails.

"There is nothing to do now but support Gaius." A defeated look came over Arthur's face. "Show him that everything will be all right, that-"

"Everything will not be alight!" Merlin shot up, propping himself on his elbows, barely rattling the boy on top of him. Arthur put up a hand to stop Merlin's retort and placed it on his chest sinking him back into the floor along with his words.

"No it will not. And it is not. But you must not let Gaius think that. Death is a terrifying thing to face, meant only for the brave, and you need to help him be brave by sucking it up and being brave yourself Merlin!" Arthur waited for a response as Merlin soaked in what he said.

"I feel so hopeless..." Merlin wasn't sure if he meant for that to slip from his mouth but it was gone before he could catch it.

Arthur had not been prepared for Merlin's confession and confusion fell across his face. "There's nothing we can do...he...a confession...it's..." He just spit out words from his sympathetic train of thought, not thinking they were really helping, but Merlin jumped at the word 'confession'.

"Wait..." Arthur looked back at the boy. "Wait-" Merlin sat up on his elbows again, Arthur's hand coming to stop him from rising any further.  "What if I can _prove_ that Gaius is innocent?" He looked at Arthur looking for any hope. He knew there had to be a way. Gaius was in fact innocent. There must have been some way that the hunter made Gaius confess. If he could prove how he made him…

"How?" Arthur looked confused. While he did prefer Merlin's change in attitude, he did not believe there was a way to prove innocence of a man who confessed his guilt.

Merlin did not answer but instead pushed at the prince's side in order for him to hint that he wanted to stand up. He was getting excited. He needed the chance to see Gaius and then he would work on a way to prove Aredian was lying. He didn't know how but he knew that he could. He had to.

Arthur looked hesitantly at Merlin but eventually let Merlin push him away knowing he could easily pin him down again. He took the opportunity to stand and stretch his sore body. His knees did not appreciate the rough ground but the only other position he could have taken was to sit on Merlin and he couldn't have done that because of his place on Merlin's body. He was, in fact, very low on Merlin when he had him pinned.

Merlin climbed up to his feet, ideas forming in his head. He was sure if he could get into Aredian's chambers that he could prove his guilt. There had to be something there.

"I see you thinking-" Arthur said looking at Merlin, "-and I don't like it." At least that got him a sarcastic almost-smile from Merlin. Arthur almost smiled too but remembering the situation and held it back. "I just don't want you to get your hopes up. Nor do I want you to do anything that will get you into trouble. I could get in a lot of trouble myself for bringing you down here. I don't know how you could possibly prove that-" Arthur paused looking at Merlin looking at the floor. "Do you hear me? Merlin?"

Merlin had not answered right away. "Yes, yes I hear you." He was too busy planning.

"Alright. Let's see Gaius" Arthur said after deciding Merlin's condition was much better than when entering the dungeon. While he did not want Merlin to have false hope, maybe it was best he did. If it would help him instill some bravery in Gaius, then perhaps it was a good thing.

Merlin had already decided that Gaius was not going to die. As he let Arthur walk ahead he established it in his mind _'Either I find proof that the witch-hunter is lying and prove Gaius' innocence or I confess and take his place...and die myself.'_ The thought left him feeling unpleasant and the emotional turmoil was eating him on the inside but he took a deep breath and pushed it all down so that it would not be visible to Gaius, plastering a smile on his face.

"I can only give you a few minutes." Arthur said when they had finally reached Gaius' cell and unlocked the door with his own keys.

All that he tried to push down started to fight its way back up Merlin saw Gaius. He was going to let him know that he was going to get out of there alive.

If it was the last thing he did.


	2. Hit A Guy While He's Down

"Thank you Arthur." Merlin said when they had to leave Gaius and walk the long path back up to the opening of the cell corridors. They had not yet talked about what Merlin had said to Gaius but he knew Arthur did not approve of the hope he tried to pass onto him. He just hoped Arthur didn't go so far as to figure out that he was willing to die himself in Gaius' place, for fear that he might try and stop him.

"Of course," Arthur said back, throwing a half smile at the boy walking in step with him. After a slight pause he stopped walking. "Merlin," he called and Merlin swirled back to face the prince, a question on his face. "I just went against my father's wishes, bringing you down here, and unfortunately for you, we can't let anyone know that." Arthur stared Merlin up and down wondering if he knew what he was getting at. A hint of mischief flooded across his feature at the prospect of just what he had to do.

"What?"

"I told people I was going to teach you a lesson down here and since I'm not actually locking you in here, I'm afraid we need proof that I taught you _something_." Arthur started surveying Merlin remembering how he had tried to punch him twice earlier. "Now," Arthur grabbed Merlin's hand in his own and rested his other arm underneath Merlin's forearm holding it up. "-these scratches are convincing but I'm afraid I give better lessons then that."

"So what-" Merlin was interrupted by the blunt impact of Arthur's fist coming into contact with his left eye. A growling scream of pain emitted from Merlin's lips. He didn't even feel Arthur's hand leaving his arm!

"There. Sorry about that, got to make it look real." Arthur said with a pat on Merlin's back and a smirk that Merlin would have loved to smack off his face. All Merlin was able to do though was stare up at him with his one good eye, the other covered with his hand. To give Arthur some credit, he felt some guilt at the fact that he had hit him directly in the eye but let it pass quickly. "Also, try and hold your stomach a little. Make it seem like you are bruised there. Here, lean on me and we'll walk up."

Merlin walked over to him with a look of pure loathing crossing over him. In moments like these, Merlin wondered why he even bothered saving his life so much.

After a bit, the boys had walked up the stairs and were nearing the guards. Merlin moved the arm that was not holding onto Arthur's shoulders and gripped tight onto the side of his stomach and created a grimace of pain on his face -not that it wasn't easy, seeing as how his eye was still throbbing. He was apparently believable because the guards laughed and padded Arthur's shoulder as they walked by and Arthur just smiled back.

' _Way to hit a guy when he's down.'_ Merlin thought and squeezed his fingers into Arthur's shoulder, hoping to cause him a little discomfort to let him know how he felt, but it made no difference.

When the dungeon was behind them, no guards in sight, Arthur suddenly took away his support and Merlin stumbled from the change. He turned to face Merlin, a small wave of concern flashing over his face at the sight of his beaten manservant. He made a move that almost looked as though he may have been going in to hug Merlin, a way of bringing some comfort to him, but his arm started to curve around and instead he pulled back and hesitantly patted Merlin's arm.

Instead of comfort like Arthur had hoped, the patting made Merlin quickly realize that he was completely head to toe bruised from the floor. Without noticing all Arthur said was, "Good luck Merlin", and walked away at a quick trot.

Luck was something Merlin was in definite need of. Now to prove the witch-hunter, someone the King trusted to hunt witches, could not be trusted when it came to hunting witches and instead appointed witches to be hunted.

_'Oh boy.'_


	3. A Special Token

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember, Season 2 Episode 7. I'm skipping the canon!

Everything was great.

Gaius was back home and Merlin was safe with him.  They had the best dinner the night before. They shared many laughs over what just happened, knowing it would never happen again. Merlin would never be so careless again.

The fun wouldn't last long though as Merlin was expected bright and early in Arthur's chambers for work. He didn't mind this time. He was almost looking forward to it because he wanted to thank Arthur for helping prolong the execution so that he could prove Gaius' innocence. If he had not risked his loyalty and trusted Merlin, Gaius would be dead.

Merlin woke up easily, for once without Gaius' prodding, and got ready for the day dressing in the blue shirt he had lying next to his bed on the floor and his favorite red scarf.

Looking at his reflection in the bowl of washing water, he saw his black eye had indeed gotten worse. Gaius had given him a paste to put on it that was meant to help prevent the swelling and the darkness but it smelled so fowl that he didn't want to put it on if he was to be within 100 feet of anyone. He would put it on when he came back for bed. So, for today, he was going to have to suffer through the judging looks. If anything, he could just wrap his scarf around his head. Then again, he probably would get even more looks…and some comments.

He started his day by walking towards Camelot's market. Gaius had asked him to go and get Arthur something as a thank you token but he didn't know what to get. He was mostly surprised Gaius asked. But life or death situations did cause people to do such things. For all he knew Gaius would give him a present too, or so he hoped.

It was very doubtful.

The prince always got what he wanted so nothing was really special. Not that Merlin needed it to be special. The prince was a prat anyway, he barely deserved anything. Merlin thoughts were only provoked more as he passed a hanging tin pan serving up the reflection of his eye, making him think of the prince pinning him down, holding his arms out, his face inches away, his fist colliding with his face. Merlin just shook his head smiling and walked on into the town not wanting to get angry after he was just so happy the night before.

All of the shops in the market were already open as they usually got their start before the sun even rose and he would have plenty of options. Or so he thought. Within the newly forming sunrise, he could see all the way down the row of selling carts and the options only intimidated him more. Completely clueless, he just decided to walk on and hope that he would stumble upon something. A part of him wondered why Gaius didn't just make him a potion or something. Wouldn't that be easier?

Walking down he saw flowers, jewelry, smelling oils, and other girlish things. Not that Merlin thought they were bad gifts, he just didn't want to be called a girl by Arthur for the umpteenth time. Even so, he did usually put smelling oils in the prince's bath water…

Merlin looked into his pocket to pull out what little money he had,  He had his eye on a good sized glass mirror that he could buy to replace the one he broke from Arthur's room. Gaius had given him some money the night before but Merlin hoped he did not have to use all of it. He did not want Gaius' money in the first place but he, of course, insisted.

The mirror unfortunately proved to be above budget. While staring out around him to try and find a smaller mirror that was within range, Merlin heard a familiar voice.

"Hello Merlin, what are you doing here?" Gwen appeared behind him.

Merlin had nothing against her but ever since he and Arthur had rescued her from Hengist, she had become increasingly more annoying to him. She didn't know it but she had proved Merlin wrong in his faith in her. He never truly liked the idea of Gwen and Arthur together but he didn't like the fact that she hurt Arthur so badly when he went out of his way and against his father's wishes to rescue her. Everyone knew, especially Merlin, just how much Arthur wanted to please his father.

It was always confusing to him, why he didn't like the two of them together. Arthur and Gwen. Gwen and Arthur. He did like teasing him about Gwen in the beginning when he thought they started to like each other but he never really liked it. He just wanted Arthur to be happy. When Arthur told Merlin how he felt, he acted supportive and instilled faith in Gwen. The faith she so obliviously proved false by her actions.

He had no problem with Arthur being with who he wanted to be with. He in fact wanted him to be with whoever made him happy, no matter who that was. Their place, if they were a servant or not, shouldn't matter.

At first Merlin thought it was because he had feelings for Gwen. It would make sense...wouldn't it? He didn't think he really felt anything for her but they did have awkward moments sometimes. He just didn't think that could be it. It just didn't make sense.

Merlin turned and grinned at her, managing to stumble backwards against the table holding the mirrors like the klutz he was. "Hi Gwen." He answered while he looked behind him with a great deal of apprehension. He didn't break anything. That was good. "I was just looking for-"

"What happened to your face?!" Gwen shouted upon noticing his black eye. Merlin looked at it too in the mirror he was holding in his hands. He had gotten used to it by this point and didn't expect someone to just blatantly point it out.

"Wha- o - um...nothing, nothing." Merlin stuttered out and continued before Gwen would ask more questions. Memories of Arthur pinning him started to spring up again. "I was just looking for something to give Arthur." Merlin paused staring at Gwen staring at his eye. "For helping Gaius." Merlin said a little more annoyed.

"Oh, um..." Gwen noticed she was staring and had the decency to look embarrassed. "Yes. You're getting him something?"

"Yes." He was definitely annoyed now, not even bothering to try and hide it. "I thought on this occasion, saving a life deserved a reward."

"Well what are you going to get him?" Gwen started looking at the mirror in his hands and the ones on the table behind him.

"I don't know." Merlin said putting it back with the others. She stared at the ground for a moment, so as to avoid staring at his eye, but it wasn't long before she jumped at an idea, snapping her gaze up.

"Oh! I got it! Here follow me!" She grabbed Merlin's arm and led him in a jog down the path towards the pub. Merlin just let her lead him through the people, now more than before, all gazing at his eye, to the back of the pub. He had never been to the back of the pub before. He never really drank so he had never really been at the front either.  Not that Arthur believed that.

Gwen knocked on the door and a big burly man came to meet them.

"Hello Gwen!" The man said with a smile on his face. "What can I do for you this morning?"

"Hi Garrett, do you remember what you were telling me about last night?"

"Yes, yes I have it right here. Stay right there, I'll go get it." Gwen smiled and he walked back into the pub, the door closing behind him. Merlin just looked at Gwen and started to ask what Garrett was getting when the man returned with a small bottle in his hand. "Here it is! The best whiskey with the strongest balance of effect and taste." The man seemed proud of his creation, laughing as he spoke. "Best one I've made so far. Men have to be careful when they drink it though. Strong stuff. Knocked this one guy over with half a glass! Got to drink it as you go."

Merlin knew nothing of alcohol but it seemed like a good enough present for Arthur. "How much?" Merlin asked giving an incredulous side glance to Gwen. He knew he wouldn't be able to afford it.

"Too much for you lad." Garrett answered with a small laugh in his voice.

"We were actually hoping you'd give it to us for free," Gwen said with assurance in her voice.

"Free?" Garrett asked with a smile, waiting for Gwen to explain. She dove right into a long winded answer talking as fast as anyone could.

"Yes, see, you still owed my father for that favor, you know the one-" Startled, he quickly looked over at Merlin to make sure he didn't know what she was talking about "-and I know he's not around but I did help him make that for you and I never told anyone, and it's not for me or Merlin it's for Arthur, and I know he may not deserve something so great as something you created but he did help save Gaius and he does other things that, well, could be seen as alright and-"

"Whoa, wait, slow down there Gwen. He helped save Gaius?" The two nodded in agreement. "Gaius is a great fellow, helped my daughter when she was sick last year, I still owe the man." He paused and decided. "Sure go ahead as long as you mention my name when the prince tries some, eh?" He winked at the two.

"Of course, thank you." Merlin said as he smiled back and took the bottle from him. It was a plain bottle with no label and the end was dipped in wax so that no air could get in and no liquid could get out. On the inside was just a brownish liquid. Seemed like every other type of whiskey to Merlin.

As Merlin and Gwen said their goodbyes to Garret and headed back towards the castle he couldn't help but wonder what made Gwen so eager to get this whiskey for Arthur.

"Thanks for your help Gwen."

"No problem Merlin." She replied with a smile.

"If you don't mind me asking-"

"Oh, we built him something for-"

"No, not that. I probably don't want to know what you made for him." Merlin said with a laugh. "I was wondering why you cashed in that favor. It was a really nice thing to do for someone like Arthur. It was really nice of you."

"Oh, well. It's just I never thanked Arthur properly for when he rescued me from the kidnappers. From when you both rescued me." She said with a glance at Merlin, not wanting to diminish his part in her rescue. "And I do care about Gaius too. I doubt I'll need something from Garrett anytime soon anyway." She said rolling it off with a shrug.

"Well, thank you." They had reached the castle and were about to part ways, Gwen going to wake Morgana and Merlin going to wake Arthur. "I'll be sure to mention it was from you too."

"Thank you Merlin. Well, I hope your eye gets better and I'll see you around."

"Yeah, see you around." With that they both left and Merlin found himself fairly alone walking towards Arthur's chambers, only passing a few guards along the way.


	4. Good Morning Sire!

Merlin reached Arthur's bed chamber and opened the door to go inside. The curtains were closed but enough light crept in from around the edges for Merlin to see the room fairly clear and he was able to see the prince flat on his back with the sheets pulled down to his waist, his bare skin shining in a stream of sunlight. His face was hidden by one of the pillows on the bed, only allowing the outsides of his messy, bedhead hair to be seen. The pillow was probably a lucky thing, Merlin thought, as usually he could hear Arthur's snoring from the kitchen.

The kitchen!

Merlin had spent all morning getting this gift that he completely forgot to pick up Arthur's breakfast. He knew he had to act fast before he woke Arthur. The prince was not much of a morning person and he was intolerable without breakfast.

The bottle of whiskey was small enough for Merlin to put into the satchel he had carried the money in. It was a fairly large satchel and the top of the whiskey was the only thing poking through. After placing the bottle in the bag, Merlin started to sneak from the room, being very careful not to wake Arthur, only walking on the tip of his toes and slowly he started opening the door.

The guard in the outside corridor was not so careful and did not expect for a boy to come out of the prince's chambers. Not expecting Merlin, he ran smack into him as he turned the corner, leaving Merlin to fall right on his back, directly back into the bed chamber. The boy on the floor cringed as this did in fact make a sound when the door swung all the way open and hit the fire irons and the rods went noisily crashing everywhere.

Merlin quickly checked the whiskey bottle and sighed in relief when he realized it did not break. He twisted his body around on the floor, hoping beyond hope that Arthur didn't hear that, only to see the prince sitting up in bed staring down at him.

"Merlin you idiot," Arthur muttered very sleepily. It was obvious he did not appreciate being woken up in this manner. Not that he ever appreciated being woken up.

"Good morning sire!" Merlin said getting up off the ground. The prince just ignored his manservant and stumbled his way over to his table to eat his breakfast, his feet dragging against the cold stone floor, scratching his surprisingly warm chest. He sat down in his chair and ran a hand through his messy blonde hair when he realized the table was empty.

"Merlin," Arthur started with a deadly warning in his voice. "Where is my breakfast?" A rumble started in his belly, only proving how much he needed the food.

"I was just about to get it!" Merlin said backing towards the door at the quickest pace he could without Arthur yelling more.

"Well hurry you idiot! Go! Go!" Arthur yelled anyway, picking up a candlestick lying on the table and throwing it in Merlin's direction as he exited the chamber.

God, Merlin could be so thick sometimes.

* * *

Merlin started to run down the corridor and when a quarter of the way to the kitchen he ran into Alba. She was a servant in the royal kitchens who had helped Merlin out before. They only got to talk when he picked up meals for the prince and she always had nice things to say. She was on her way to bringing Arthur his breakfast and hoped to get there before Merlin realized he had forgotten, or worse, had woken the prince without any food. Merlin thanked her multiple times all while running back towards the room and yelling to Alba that he owed her a favor.

Merlin returned to the room with the platter of bread and meat and cheese and with a smile on his face. However, the prince did not share that look of happiness. He had not gotten up from his chair and was rubbing his face repetitively, trying to get himself focused on waking. He looked up from behind his hands as Merlin sat the plate down in front of his elbows but the frown he wore stayed.

"Here you are," Merlin said with a smile.

Arthur had not expected such a quick return. He gave a quick glance at Merlin and did not share a thank you but grunted instead.

Merlin just filled Arthur's goblet with water. Thankfully he had left the water there from the last time he was in the chambers.

Arthur ate in silence and when he was finished he found himself much more awake then before. Food was always the cure. He could finally see everything in the room and his servant in front of him start to focus. He did a double take on Merlin's face when he noticed the shining black eye. Merlin just gave a half grin in response hoping that the prince could sense his thought of ' _This is your fault'_.

Arthur stared for a moment longer, contemplating on what he wanted to say, his mouth hanging slightly open. Instead of an apology or admission that the injury was his fault, he decided to stick with the bad mood he started off with. The guilt was creeping up on him and he didn't like the feeling. He didn't want to recognize its existence.

"Get me dressed and then I have more chores for you to do," he ordered without sympathy.

"Yes sire." Merlin responded in his mocking tone. Of course the prince would not care. Prat.

Merlin brought out the prince's clothes for the day while he was off relieving himself. He had a double session of training that morning and afternoon which meant that he would want a bath when he got back. The bath was something Merlin loathed. It took him forever to heave those buckets one at a time to fill the large tub, all while keeping it warm. The thought of coming in early and doing it himself with magic when the prince was not around was tempting. He quickly rid himself of the thought when Arthur came back in wearing the pair of tights he wore to bed the night before. No use in changing, he was just going to get dirty anyway.

No words passed between the boys. Both were too annoyed with the other.

Merlin weaved in and out with the exchange of clothes and limbs, starting as usual pulling the trousers onto the prince's body, riding the fabric up the lean calves and tight thigh muscles to settle around his waist. The shirt he had picked out had the prince's arms high in the sky stretching his torso, showing off his strong stomach muscles. Adjusting it to its proper position, Merlin noticed the string at the top the shirt had escaped from its hole.

Bent on fixing the dressing error, he took the string in his hands and tried to thread it back through the hole, making it even again. It was tricky because the hole seemed to be much too small for the size of the string and the string had become frayed at the end. How it escaped in the first place seemed unexplainable. He worked his nimble hands as best he could but could not avoid contact with the Arthur's skin. Each motion meant to fix the problem caused him to rub up against his chest, the chest he noticed bared not only the small curls of Arthur's blonde hair but also the soft touch equivalent to the finer silks. It had to be a side effect of getting to be clean all the time.

Merlin had finally gotten the string through the hole but for some reason still pretended to be working on it. Slowly he moved his hands around just at a chance to feel the prince's sun warmed skin on the back of his hand. It was mesmerizing and he found himself staring at the spot his hand was rubbing, noticing the strong line of Arthur's collarbone. He never thought a collarbone could look attractive. _'Whoa! Whoa there. Attractive?'_ This was getting strange. Merlin dropped his hands directly and looked up at the prince to make sure he did not get any hint as to Merlin's completely weird train of thought. He did not seem to notice as he kept staring down at Merlin with an unreadable expression. His eyes almost looked sad.

The touch of Merlin's hand on his chest in that repetitive motion had Arthur entranced. At first he was annoyed but after looking at the boy work, the feel of the rough skin caressing him, he couldn't help but just stare, and stare, and stare. He was distracted by the motion when his eyes fell specifically on Merlin's blackened eye, the horrible and puffy dark spot that seemed to drag all his attention. That did not stop him from also noticing the scratches and bruises going up and down Merlin's arms, no doubt from the wall and floor of the cell. When he noticed Merlin staring back he shook his head and brought his gaze away as the guilt started to creep back.

Merlin proceeded with his dressing job making sure he did not notice anything else physically about the prince. Not his strong arms, not his tousled hair, not his sturdy shoulders, not the freckle on his neck, not his anything.

When Merlin finished he looked at his handy work. All that was left was for Merlin to put on the belt Arthur wore to hold his sword. He held it up and wrapped his arms around the prince trying to clasp it on behind him but he could not seem to find the other end behind the prince's back! He kept trying to throw it to himself but missed. After the third time he noticed the awkward embrace he was giving Arthur and looked up at the prince's scowling face, giving him a quick fake smile, and inched closer to him so that he could reach both hands behind his back so as to hand himself the other end of the belt. With the added volume of the armor, Merlin found himself touching metal with both arms, in a literal hug of Arthur's body, and had to move his face to the right so that he would not be directly face to face touching Arthur's nose with his own.

Arthur turned away with a scowl as he let him finish. Merlin's actions were very curious. He certainly was dressing him oddly and he was extremely touchy for some reason. Well, Merlin usually did touch him but he seemed extra distracted. Or maybe it was Arthur who was distracted by his guilt focusing in on Merlin because that's who the guilt was directed at. The emotion was not something he wanted associated with his manservant. It was Merlin's fault anyway, he was sure of it.

While securing the belt, Merlin managed to lean back a few inches hoping to give Arthur a little extra space. However, there was only so far he could lean and as the belt was made to a custom fit, there was no escaping his close proximity to the prince. As he clasped the belt and looked adamantly forward he had the chance to notice how the armor framed Arthur, if not to notice how it also made him look just a tad bit fat. He followed the intricate work of the chainmail leading his gaze up higher and higher on Arthur's body until he was staring directly into the prince's unreadable blue eyes. Merlin scolded himself, wondering why he was acting the way he was. He seemed to be very distracted and extra clumsy, especially for getting lost in his prince's stare, still not looking away. All Arthur did was look back at him. There was some kind of tension between the boys and they both could feel it but neither really knew what to do about it.

Arthur had noticed the raw proximity of the other boy to him. Thoughts drifted and he started thinking that if he were not layered in clothes and armor, he probably would have been able to feel Merlin's body heat. He definitely felt it on his face. Merlin was so close he could feel his warm breath fall against his skin with every exhale. They were far too close for far too long. Why didn't Merlin move away? Why didn't he move himself? Arthur breathed deep and shrugged off the hypnotic eye contact between them, blaming it on Merlin's captivating blue eyes. Wait...captivating?

Arthur cleared his throat as he finally decided to break the silence. Things were not as they normally were and that needed to change. After taking a few steps back and breaking the tension, he said "Well Merlin, I'm afraid I cannot let your behavior from this morning pass so I've added on some extra chores for you today." Arthur felt that was something normal, something good, something that wouldn't raise any more unanswerable questions.

Merlin stifled a groan, reminding himself that he still had to thank the prince and give him his gift. Maybe it would even get him out of a few chores. "Arthur I actually wanted-"

Merlin started to speak and almost as quick, a wave of frustration and anger exploded within Arthur. "No Merlin! I am speaking!" He wasn't quite sure where it was all coming from but he knew whatever Merlin had to say would just make him more angry.

The anger flowed and Arthur knew it wasn't reasonable but he knew it was all coming from Merlin. His idiocy, his eye, his scratches, his being late this morning, his acting weird, his touching. It all made Arthur so mad all at once. He was sure he shouldn't act this way but something about Merlin saying his name…made him explode. "Now you will do as I say without question! Is that clear?"

Merlin was taken aback at the anger the prince produced, his eyes bugging out in surprise. It came from nowhere! He did not expect such a violent temper from the prince over something like a late breakfast. "Yes sire." He spat his words out with a combination of confusion and hurt and anger. The prince was screaming at him. This wasn't normal or called for. Well actually it was normal...but not this time.

"Now I want you to clean my clothes for the week, clean my bed sheets, clean my windows, clean my floors, clean my fireplace, I want it sparkling in my room. Shine my boots, clean my bath, clean my goblets, fetch me more wine from the market, fetch me a new mirror, fetch me more firewood, clean the guest room down the hall, mend my robes, bathe my horses, muck out my stables, and I'll have more for you to do when I'm done for the day." The prince had shouted each of his demands at Merlin all while picking up his helmet and heading towards the door. "I want my bath ready by the time I get back before dinner, I am having dinner with my father tonight. And I want this all done today! You cannot go home until you have finished _all_ your chores. Is that clear Merlin?!"

Merlin was dumbstruck. He had never seen the prince so mad over something so minimal. This was not the first time he was late for breakfast.

There was no way he was getting his present now.

"Sire." Was all Merlin growled back looking at the floor not trying to hide his contempt for his superior. He didn't even want to look at him.

Arthur left the room leaving Merlin helplessly lost.

He did not understand that boy. Why did he always have to be such a pig face?

He looked about the room deciding what on the long list of chores he should do first and deciding whether or not he could get away with using magic. It would take him all day. He wouldn't even be able to break for lunch.

What a _prat_ Arthur was.

* * *

Arthur had not gotten far past his chamber. He leaned against the wall near the door, looking up at the ceiling. He did not mean to explode on Merlin like that. He was annoyed that he woke up with a late breakfast, sure, but he wasn't mad. Let alone furious. Merlin had done it plenty of times before.

_'Merlin.'_

That boy had to of been annoying him on purpose. He was such a klutz. And why didn't he even try to hide his black eye in front of Arthur? He knew he was trying to make him feel worse than he already did. He didn't think the injury would look that bad and he was sure it hurt. It was necessary though. And what was with Merlin dressing him this morning? Why did he have to keep touching him so much? Skin on skin, over and over.

The prince touched the cool armor covering the part of his chest that had earlier been exposed and thought of the rough hands gliding across his skin, a gentle tickle making his muscles dance. The thought made him jump from embarrassment and he changed it again to blaming Merlin. It was Merlin after all who wouldn't stop staring at him. Yes Arthur stared at him for a bit but that was because of his black eye. It was hard not to look at it! And what was with the belt? No one in the history of man has ever had that much trouble putting a belt on.

Why was Merlin acting this way? Especially the day after Arthur had helped him prove Gaius' innocence, the day after he helped save Gaius' life. Did he get any thanks from Merlin? No. He never did. Merlin would always just sit there and let someone else do the work.

Arthur knew he didn't mean that but he was just working himself up again. Now was the time to go work out his issues on the battlefield, so he left for his training day.


	5. Drunk and Lazy

Merlin would have been tempted to give the whiskey to Gaius or drink it himself if he had had the chance. Arthur's chores kept him busy all day long so he didn't have a moment to do either.

Almost done, he looked out at the freshly cleaned windows to see that the sun was near setting. That would mean Arthur would be back any minute now and the only chore left to do was to get his bath ready. There was no way Merlin would get the bath ready in time...without a little help.

Checking all around and in the corridor outside the chamber, he saw no one, so he focused on the tub and whispered the words that he knew would bring freshly warm water. He chanted the spell again at the bucket and started to pour it in when he heard Arthur's steps coming his way. Arthur pulled open the door just as Merlin had finished making it look like he had just finished his chores.

"Your bath sire." Merlin's words came out crisp and he did not look at Arthur directly, instead staring at the floor like most servants would. None of the anger he had for the prince for making him do so many chores dissipated. Well...more chores than usual or necessary.

Glancing up quickly, unable to stare at his toes forever, he saw that a bath sure did look like something Arthur needed. He came in with mud smeared on his face and hair, his armor, his arms and, well, the rest of him. Merlin was sure he was going to be cleaning that later.

Arthur looked at his servant, stuck in the doorway not knowing what to say or do at the moment. Merlin's words hit him in the face, much like the many blows he took in training that day. He usually wasn't so bad in training but he was distracted. It did not take him long to work off his rage from the morning and all that was left was that damned guilt. He almost left a dozen times to tell Merlin to stop doing his chores and go home but he didn't know how to explain himself. He was too prideful. He didn't like to apologize. He just looked at the raven haired boy in front of him drawn to his black eye, the black eye that he caused. He didn't move, he just held his sword and helmet in hand and stared on uncomfortably.

"Sire?" Merlin seemed unsure. He was still mad, sure, but the prince seemed non-responsive. Almost like he was in a daze or was under a spell. Oh crap. What did he do now? "Arthur?!"

Merlin speaking his name made him jump back to life and walk forward. He still did not know what he was going to say. His room, now that he noticed, did look spotless. The blankets on his bed seemed almost a different shade they were so clean. The guilt was eating him.

Merlin grumbled and turned his attention to undressing the prince working down layer by layer, mud falling on his nice clean floors. He knew the signs of a spell and Arthur was just being his unappreciative self.

Merlin's all too sudden presence made Arthur annoyed. Why should he feel so guilty? He was his servant after all. These were his chores. This was his job. He handed Merlin his helmet and sword and stood still as Merlin undressed him, giving him as little help as possible.

Merlin started to get mad again, not that it ever really left. Was Arthur still mad?

The prince lifted his arms so Merlin could gain access to all he needed. The ability to move reassured him that he was in fact not under any spell or daze, to a point, but could he really still be mad?

Merlin lifted the chainmail and revealed the shirt underneath. The stubborn string had escaped from the hole again but he didn't feel like fixing it at this moment. Touching the prince was not something he felt like doing. Even if the soft skin did seem to be calling. Its call just made him madder.

Merlin worked quickly and without care until all that was left on the prince was his pair of black tights. Merlin paused. Arthur usually left at this point to grab his drying rag from the next room and come in with nothing but that on so that Merlin would not undress him the entire way. But he was just staring ahead at nothing.

Merlin shifted uneasily, not knowing where to go. He was too mad to want to say anything, he wanted to leave as soon as possible so as little talk as possible was what he wanted. He only stayed because he knew that Arthur told him he would have other chores. He didn't feel like adding to that list because he left without Arthur's permission. He decided to start picking up Arthur's armor and clothes that had been discarded and placed them in to a basket next to his dresser.

The prince's mind was on other things. He was thinking of how he would apologize to Merlin again. He thought of letting him off for the rest of the week but the thought of not having Merlin around seemed...well it just seemed too hard for some reason. He liked having him around to do his things. And he wasn't exactly bad company. He just didn't know what to say because every glance at Merlin made his heart thump in a small rage. Why was it that he annoyed him so much? And yet he wanted him around?

"Sire? Are you not bathing today?" Merlin decided to finally move things along, biting his words out. Still Arthur did not respond. Merlin's anger slowly started to wash out with concern for Arthur as it usually did. Even if Arthur was this mad, he would usually just throw things and yell. He was never so quiet. "Is everything alright Arthur?"

"Huh? Oh, yes Merlin. I'm fine." Arthur finally answered, shaking his head and standing straighter. He did not move from that spot though.

"Are you sure?" Merlin asked, looking the prince up and down, making sure there was nothing wrong with him physically and trying to work out what else could be wrong. Maybe he hit his head?

"Yes _Mer_ lin, I'm fine." And there was that tone, the tone Arthur had when saying Merlin's name whenever he got annoyed. At least he was actually alright then. Distracted, a prat, but alright.

"Are you not bathing? You're still dressed." Merlin stated, hoping the prince would have realized this.

"Well then undress me. Idiot." Arthur's words came out harsher then he meant, fumbling over calling him an idiot. He just couldn't explain this feeling in the back of his mind as he kept playing out scenarios of apologies in his head, trying to land on one where he would not have to say the words 'I'm sorry'.

"Um..." Merlin hummed nervously. Did Arthur not realize there was only one piece of clothing left? Did he not realize what the article was?

"Now!" There it was again. Arthur did not mean to be that harsh. He just wanted a bath. It had been a long day.

He ran his hand through his hair, pulling more mud through to the back and on the stroke he saw the streaks of mud that had seeped through his clothes during lunch break. He did not even realize that Merlin had taken his shirt off so quickly. What was left? What was taking him so long?

"Alright." Merlin proceeded shakily wondering if the prince knew what he was asking. Should he say something? All Arthur was doing was yelling.

He wondered if there was a way to do it with magic so that he wouldn't actually have to touch Arthur in that way. The half naked prince _was_ in a bit of a trance…he may be able to pull it off.

Survival instinct kicked in and Merlin decided he best not risk it as he crooked his finger under the soft fabric of the stockings and came into contact with Arthur's bare flesh underneath. He started to shake with nerves and with something else. Anticipation? No that couldn't be right.

Holding his hand still he ran past the idea of yelling back at Arthur but there was still the chance of adding to that chore list. His entire body still hurt from the amount of chores he had to do already. He just wanted to go home and bathe himself even if his bath wouldn't be quite so inviting.

Maybe the prince did know what he was doing. Maybe he was being extra lazy or maybe he was bruised and couldn't bend over and was too proud to admit it.

In any scenario Merlin made up, he still had to go down.

Face to face with the prince Merlin took his other hand and did the same thing, crooking his finger under the fabric. Arthur was not looking directly at him, somewhere else, off in his own head. Merlin swallowed, breathed in deep, and started to bend his knees. He sank down, moving his entire hand to encase the lining of the fabric as it followed him until he had reached Arthur's ankles, his palms sliding down the prince's toned legs the entire way as his hands fell and waved and danced in and around the muscles. The movements and the feel under his hands distracted Merlin but not quite enough as he glanced at the one thing he told himself he would not be glancing at.

Merlin looked away just as fast as he had glanced, his cheeks flushed. Well he was embarrassed. Only embarrassed right? That's what this was. He was embarrassed because he saw a part of the prince that no other man had seen. It was forbidden. It was...something. Oh boy was it something.

 _'Stop it Merlin'_ , was all he thought, over and over to himself while he lifted the prince's legs one by one, hooking a hand under the knee and pulling the rest of the tight fabric from his body. When he had finished, he breathed deeply, willing himself to calm down before more blood flowed to places other than his face. He needed to be able to face the prince.

Why was this happening anyway? He wasn't…attracted…to the prince. Well, sure he was good looking...for a guy… but Merlin never liked men like that. Well, he did have a few questionable moments with Will from home but this was just embarrassment.

Will was his only friend back home. There were no girls Merlin's age and that's why those thoughts had popped up. He had shared everything with Will including his magic so of course he felt close with him. This was just embarrassment. Nothing more. And yup, Merlin was embarrassed. He stood fully and threw the garment in the basket with the other clothes and looked past the prince to the opposite wall so as to avoid eye contact.

"There you-" Merlin's voice cracked as it came out an octave higher than normal. He cleared his throat and started again, maybe a little lower than normal in overcompensation. "There you are sire. Ready to go."

Arthur started to turn away so that he could take off his tights and grab his drying rag when he noticed a certain breeze hitting his thighs...his upper thighs. A look of horror and embarrassment spread across his face as he suddenly realized why Merlin had been so hesitant to undress him further. He spun fast and looked up, his hands covering himself as he looked straight at Merlin, checking to see what Merlin's reaction was.

Merlin had been looking at the prince walking away noticing how muscles could transform a man's back into something mystical but when he saw the prince make eye contact with him, he suddenly looked away, looking anywhere but at Arthur. He would almost want to smile at Arthur's uncomfortableness if he didn't feel so uncomfortable himself.

Without another word Arthur sprinted to the tub and jumped in, splashing some water around the edges. His face was a deep shade of red, one that almost matched his bed sheets. He did not want to face Merlin. He wanted to dunk his head under and not come up until he had left. Any feelings of anger towards Merlin had been washed away by the embarrassment but now he _really_ didn't know what to say.

Merlin stood by, not knowing what to do as the prince dunked his head under water trying to shake off what just happened.

When Arthur resurfaced he came up on the opposite side of the tub looking at Merlin. Merlin still looked around the room as if he was chasing a speeding fly with his eyes not wanting to make the contact. He couldn't remember the last time he felt this uncomfortable.

Arthur coughed to break the silence that had lasted for far too long, looking for anything to take his mind off what happened. Absolutely anything.

"That's um..." Arthur started to point at Merlin's belt, the thing he had been staring at to avoid his face. "That's...so...what's in your satchel?" There was something to change the subject. Merlin's satchel had something poking from the top.

Merlin was relieved for a change of topic. He didn't know what the prince was thinking and he was not sure he wanted to. He probably felt disgust that Merlin didn't say something, probably anger, probably nothing good.

"This? Oh..." Merlin paused, lifting the satchel and drawing back the opening. He decided to let any anger he felt towards Arthur slip away in favor of what had just happened and welcomed the conversation diversion. "It's for you actually. It's a thank you present. For helping Gaius. It's from Gaius and Gwen and I. Garrett made it." Merlin felt himself rambling, he knew he was, but he didn't know what else to do.

"What is it? Bring it here." Arthur said ignoring the fact that Merlin would be so close to him again. He wasn't sure he wanted Merlin so close but he had been close before when Arthur was in the tub. Hell Merlin even washed him most of the time...every time. Arthur just liked to be washed, he liked the feel of Merlin's coarse hands running through his hair, on his head, his back, his chest...because ... he couldn't think of a good reason so he decided to ignore it and go back to looking at the bottle Merlin now carried in his hands.

Merlin hesitated in stepping toward Arthur. Seeing as what just happened, he did not think getting nearer to the prince's naked body was a good idea, sharing the other's thought. He decided it was best to face the challenge and just to keep pedaling forward with the new subject of his gift.

"It's whiskey. Garrett said it's the best he's made with the strongest balance of impact and taste. I don't know quite what that means but he said to take it in as you go because it's very strong." Merlin was rambling again.

"Pour us a glass will you?" Arthur said. Merlin did not hesitate, anything to stop his constant need to find a new place to look.

Following orders, he used the edge of Arthur's sword sitting on the table to pry off the wax on top of the bottle and he easily managed to get the cork out…with a slight whisper. He filled Arthur's glass a fourth of the way full, putting a good dent in the bottle. He was sure Arthur wouldn't mind a bit more so he put some more in the goblet until it was about a third of the way full. He turned and handed the goblet to Arthur.

Arthur was glad to get the drink. He took a sip and got the full impact of the meaning Garrett held in his words. This whiskey was strong! But at least it did have good taste. That one sip put his mind more at ease about the situation than he could have hoped.

"Get one for yourself too." Arthur waved Merlin towards another newly cleaned goblet that was sitting on the table hoping they both could be at ease.

Merlin did not argue and smiled as he poured himself a fourth of a glass. He knew he wouldn't be able to drink as much as Arthur. The last time he was drunk did not end well. That much mead was not good to his stomach. He took a sip and his face recoiled from the alcohol. Now he remembered why he didn't drink. He hated the taste.

Arthur giggled from his tub as he took another sip. "Too strong for you Merlin?"

Merlin just gave him a look and took another taste hiding any reaction in his face.

"Not at all sire." Merlin smiled as he spoke his lie. Arthur knew it too.

The boys sat a while longer, drinking and staring at the fire Merlin had started earlier. It seemed to burn even brighter now that he had cleaned the fireplace.

Arthur finished his drink first and waved Merlin over to take his goblet from him. Merlin had only finished half of his and grabbed the goblet and set it down on the table. As he turned around he found a tipsy prince leaning against the side of the tub closest to Merlin. His arm was slung on the edge and his head rested on top and he was petting his hair repetitively with his other arm.

Merlin couldn't help but smile at the lopsided grin Arthur was giving him. Merlin's grin was a bit sloppy too... and the room seemed to be spinning a bit. Uh-oh Merlin was getting tipsy too.

"Don't think drinking gets you out of washing me, Merlin." Oh yes that drink was strong indeed. "And pour me some more of that whiskey. It's good." Arthur knew when he was getting tipsy. He had drunk plenty of times before and knew the symptoms. He didn't mind at all though. Even though he didn't want to be drunk in front of his father, he needed the distraction. Anything to keep him from thinking of what had transpired minutes ago.

Merlin did as he was told and handed the goblet to Arthur with the drink filling a bit more than Merlin intended. Even so the goblet was not but a fourth full. Merlin took another sip of his own drink and noticed that the alcohol had lost a bit of its bitterness. The fire in his throat had subsided as he swallowed and he sipped a bit more.

"Coming Arthur." Merlin started forward, stumbling a bit, as he grabbed the short stool near the fireplace. There was no way he was going to be able to wash Arthur standing. He sat the stool down so his back would be facing the fire and the prince lazily moved through the water towards Merlin.

Arthur's muscles were much more relaxed than when he walked into the room or when the...incident...occurred. He stopped short of the wall of the tub when he caught of glimpse of Merlin's face and started staring relentlessly at the injury he caused him.

Merlin had trouble keeping eye contact as his eyes kept running down Arthur's chest, sliding around his collar bone, and bouncing back up every time he reached water. He held out until he finally couldn't hold in his curiosity and asked, "What?", with another lousy smile and giggle. Arthur smiled for a quick moment too but then started to look sad, very troubled.

Arthur kept staring at Merlin's eye. The injury _he_ caused. He kept thinking about all he made Merlin do for chores on top of that. He must have already been sore from the full body bruise from the tackling in the dungeon. The guilt bubbled up again, easily now that his defenses were not up.

"I'm sorry Merlin." He came closer to Merlin's face, inches away in order to get a good look at the swollen mark he made. The alcohol was making it hard to focus on Merlin and the proximity was necessary, he was sure.

Merlin sat absolutely still not sure what the prince was thinking or what he was going to do. He was touched that Arthur apologized. Usually the prince was not so outright with his apology.

"I'm so sorry." He touched the sensitive skin surrounding the dark blemish that covered the left side of his face. It was not just a touch but a caress, almost like he was afraid to touch him. Like he was afraid he would hurt him again.

"It's alright Arthur." He caught eyes easily with the bather, his face being inches away. He seemed more bent out of shape about his than he should be. Merlin really did want to reassure him it was alright.

"No, it's not Merlin." The prince was still touching his face moving his fingers back so that his palm encompassed Merlin's cheek. "I'm sorry about today too. I shouldn't have gone off on you like that, you shouldn't have done all I asked. It was wrong of me."

"Thank you Arthur." Merlin tilted into the hand on his face and locked eyes with the blue-eyed boy, not daring to look away. He tried to get a read on what he was thinking, why he was apologizing. As if Merlin could do anything in the state he was in. "Arthur?"

"Yes Merlin?" Arthur's face and hand still had not pulled away.

"Why did you go off? Were you really that mad about breakfast?" Merlin couldn't help asking. For some reason, it seemed much easier to ask. The liquor loosened his tongue a bit.

Arthur stared at Merlin, opening and closing his mouth three or four times. He wanted to tell Merlin the reason but he himself couldn't even put it into words. He wasn't sure. It just didn't make sense. He felt like Merlin was...well he wasn't quite sure how he felt about Merlin. He just knew he took stuff out on him sometimes... a lot of times. Arthur spun around in a quick motion, taking his hand from Merlin's face and turned so his back was to Merlin. "No Merlin. It wasn't you."

Merlin picked up the soap lying next to the tub and dipped it into the water trying to ignore how the turning away sure made it feel like it was him. The water felt warm on his hands and a part of him wanted to undress and dive right in, even if Arthur was still in there. ' _I need to stop drinking that_.' Merlin thought as he looked at the now noticeably lower bottle of whiskey. ' _Then again...'_ Merlin took another gulp from his drink, finishing it off.

"Then what was it?" Merlin prodded.

"Well it had to do with you but..." The words were not coming out right. Arthur took another sip of whiskey as Merlin started to work the soap around his chest, moving his hands lazily around the prince's pecks. The alcohol was obviously having an effect on Merlin, Arthur could tell that much by his klutzier movements, plus Merlin was as small as a stick so of course the alcohol was affecting him. But he also noticed the effect was stronger than usual on himself too. "I don't know where the frustration comes from. I just...take it out on you. I'm sorry." Whoa, the alcohol was having a bigger effect than he thought. He did not expect to say that.

It was a frustration thing, like he said, wasn't it? Where did it come from? Why did it come out when Merlin was around? It just didn't make sense.

"It's fine Arthur." Merlin smiled at the prince's sudden epiphany. The idea made him concerned but it also made him smile. He wasn't sure why this made him happy. Maybe it was because he knew of the frustration he felt. . .That didn't seem right. He ignored his thoughts and continued rubbing the soap over the prince's chest until he realized he had been cleaning the same spot the entire time, the same spot he had been rubbing with the back of his hand that morning. Smiling at his own mistake, he lifted Arthur's head up so that he could reach his back and shoulders.

As Merlin rubbed his hands across Arthur's back, Arthur let out little gasps and moans from how good it felt to have his muscles massaged after a double session of training. He knew he didn't mean to but he couldn't control himself in the state he was in. He knew he had to stop drinking before dinner with his father but the effect just made his bath so much more pleasurable. It was so much nicer when he was this relaxed. He took another sip from his drink, realizing he had finished half of it. What was this? His second? His third?

Merlin just smiled at the sounds Arthur was making. A part of him wondered what it would be like if they switched places. If he was in the tub and Arthur was rubbing his back naked. No not Arthur naked...Merlin naked. Arthur would be there...naked...no. What?

Merlin stopped rubbing Arthur's back as his train of thought started to get him worried. Worried that he might act on it. Deciding the bath was over, he stood up and started walking towards the dresser that held Arthur's drying rag. Standing up was a rush in itself as the alcohol had seemed to take a stronger effect on him. He was no longer tipsy, this was a different state.

"Merlin?" Arthur groaned at the lack of hands massaging into his back. "What are you doing?" The prince sat up more, doing a poor job of keeping his head from flopping to the side as he asked.

"You'll be having dinner with your father soon, sire." Merlin responded not looking at the prince. He did not want him to see where the blood had indeed flowed to this time with his latest train of thought. He just fiddled with the clothes in the cabinet pretending to look for an outfit for Arthur even though he had already set aside some clothes.

Merlin heard the splash of water from behind him and he whipped around with one of Arthur's drying rags held at his waist. Arthur was standing, forgetting his nudity, staring at Merlin. Merlin did indeed look upon all of Arthur yet again. _All_ of him. The boy was dripping, naked before him, the water glowing and reflecting the dancing rays from the fire. Droplets were sliding down from his hair, down his face, slipping down his neck to his chest, down to his stomach, to his inner thigh, Merlin seemed to linger there, staring again at Arthur's shaft. Then he followed another drop down inside the thighs, dancing down the knee slipping back into the water.

Alcohol was such a bad idea, why did he do this to himself? He looked up at the prince worried he didn't realize what he was doing yet again.

"Why do you call me sire?" Arthur was confused and drunk. He was most definitely not sober with the way he stood and held his goblet, nearly falling from his hands into the tub. Drunk indeed. He did want to know why Merlin called him that though. He called him Arthur most of the time and sire when he was mad. Why did he call him sire now? Was he mad?

"I'm your servant." Merlin answered dumbfounded, the distraction of having to answer Arthur helping with his growing problem. Thankfully he could still hold the rag in front of his waist. He hadn't meant to upset Arthur but sometimes sire was just an automatic response for him when he was upset. This time Arthur wasn't making him upset, not really, he just didn't like the idea of Arthur having to go. He rather enjoyed being drunk around Arthur when Arthur was drunk too.

"Is that all you think you are?" Arthur stared at the boy across the room not bothering to remember what state of dress he was in and he had almost forgotten about the goblet in his hand when addressing Merlin, sloshing the liquid inside. He was hurt at the fact that Merlin didn't see that he thought more of him than just a servant. He needed to know that. He tried to place the goblet on the table and it took him a few tries before he was able to get it upright.

Merlin did not know how to address his last question and so stood still in his place. "Sire?" The drunken response was something Merlin realized was wrong within a moment's thought.

"Arthur! Call me Arthur!"

Merlin started to approach Arthur with the rag in hand, not knowing how to respond to this drunk angry Arthur. "Arthur, are you alright?" He asked hesitantly, stumbling to the tub.

"I just thought you knew we were closer than that." Arthur realized he slurred his barely audible response. He swallowed and took Merlin's held out hand as he helped Arthur out of the tub.

Merlin noticed Arthur luckily had managed to get his face and hair clean in the time they were both sober. The rest of him looked fine to Merlin so he just held out the rag for him to dry himself off. Merlin didn't even care that Arthur was naked anymore. He just wanted him to say something else. He stared at Arthur, holding out the rag.

"You're much more...you're a friend...you mean more Merlin." Arthur had always had trouble expressing what he was thinking, or rather feeling.

Merlin had realized the prince did not understand that he was supposed to be getting dry right away so that he could meet the king. He decided to start drying him himself. It actually came very easy for him, much easier to care for the prince in the state he was in. He actually wanted to do it for him.

He started with the easiest part of Arthur, the chest. He worked his way up and around his arms and moved around to the back of Arthur so as to get his back and shoulders, refusing to go down. He did not want to make another reason for them both to get drunker than they already were. Merlin's response was slow coming as he was distracted by his drying duty.

"Thank you Arthur. I feel the same about you." Arthur smiled at Merlin's comment but his smile quickly disappeared without warning. Merlin grabbed Arthur's clothes for dinner not knowing what to say. Arthur sure could be confusing and moody.

Arthur didn't think Merlin meant what he said. All he said was he felt the same. Really? Was he this confused? This frustrated? Did he actually care or was he just saying that because he was talking to the prince? To his boss. Did he not think of him as a friend?

During this train of thought Arthur had managed to get on his tights and trousers. His legs had been wet still but his tights seemed to soak up the moisture. He realized he had been naked in front of Merlin again but didn't think twice on it as he was too conflicted by his thoughts. Then he tried to put on his shirt and his state of being made it harder than usual to get dressed and he had an impossible time with it. He could not figure out where the arms were and where the head was supposed to go.

Merlin was waiting and watching but only for so long. Fed up with seeing the prince struggle, he took the shirt from him and turned it inside out and handed it back to him. Arthur mumbled his thanks and tried to put it on again, failing at getting his arm through the sleeve repeatedly. Merlin couldn't wait any longer.

"Have I upset you sire?" Arthur snapped his head at Merlin when he said 'sire'. Merlin gave a look of apology and took the shirt from Arthur and took both of the prince's arms in his hands and pushed them towards the sky so that he could but the shirt on him himself. When the shirt had made it completely over Arthur's head, Merlin took his time in pulling it down. Being this close to the prince was so easy when he was drunk. When Arthur was drunk. Usually Merlin was afraid of touching him too much or making him mad but now he was just relaxed. He moved his hand to flatten the shirt against Arthur's hard, solid chest and stomach. He repeated the pressing motion four or five times, far past necessary.

Arthur had not taken his eyes off Merlin's the entire time he stood there touching him. The proximity came into focus again but both boys were too drunk to care. "Do you really care Merlin?" Arthur's voice came out only above a whisper, a slurred whisper. "Or do you just say these things to please me?"

Merlin couldn't help feeling offended. Why would he think he didn't mean it? If he was mean to the prince it was only out of jest. "Of course I care for you." Merlin stared directly into Arthur's eyes, not planning on flinching so as to prove he was not lying. "It's just hard for me to say. It's not my place to say."

The stare between them grew to hold something much stronger in these sentimental moments. It was reminiscent of the stare they held the night Arthur tackled him in the dungeon. Something was pulling them together and they just couldn't look away. Merlin did an internal check and realized it was no magic he was producing, he felt no magic surrounding them, it had to be something else.

Arthur felt the same pull only his mind never went to magic. His mind was just reeling with thoughts and questions. He stared on into Merlin's ocean blue eyes until all else dissolved away and they were all he concentrated on. They were made even bluer by the black surrounding the one of them. He stared on until he only saw the eyes, no longer seeing the scratches or bruises, swaying with his imbalance.

Both boys were at nearly equal height so their faces lined naturally, making Merlin sure he could smell the alcohol on Arthur's breath. Then again it could have been his own. They were so close their breaths became one in the atmosphere surrounding them. It must have been minutes, it must have been. It felt like longer.

Arthur stumbled a bit forward due to swaying and due to something he couldn't explain. He just wanted to. He needed to. His movement forward brought his face literally a half an inch from Merlin's. If his face was not bent to the side, their noses would have touched. Both boys looked at each other, neither knowing what to do or what was going on.

Merlin's heart was pounding in his chest, so loud, he was sure Arthur could hear it. He was close enough to hear it. Merlin slipped forward a bit more, whether it was because he was drunk or because he wanted to, he wasn't sure. The slip brought Merlin's bottom lip to brush Arthur's. Merlin's heart skipped a beat as it happened and Arthur had jumped inside, his heart leaping.

Before either could make heads or tails of what was going on, both moved in further. Their lips met and both froze solid. Merlin jumped in his skin, dropping the drying rag that he still had in his hand and Arthur almost lost his balance from the shock of what had just happened. Neither was sure if this was what the other wanted.

Merlin was sure there was some unseen force of magic causing Arthur to do this.

Arthur was sure Merlin was just doing what a good servant would do.

Neither boy had moved. Their lips were locked still until both boys started to feel awkward, coming up with their own excuses as to what was happening in their mind. Merlin was about to pull away to apologize but Arthur only heard the intake of breath. Nervously Arthur took that as a sign of encouragement and started to move his lips against Merlin's.

Merlin was surprised at how easily he responded and his lips started to move slowly with Arthur's. It was not a legendary kiss but it was one that got both of their hearts racing. Their lips were sloppy and Merlin was sure he bit Arthur's bottom lip at one point but it didn't matter. He was too preoccupied with what he was doing. With not believing what he was doing. With not believing what Arthur was doing.

Arthur was confused. Was he the one who started this? Was he really this drunk? Did he want this? He knew he did, but why did he want it? He just wanted to keep going. So he did.

Merlin started to get used to what they were doing, used to the pace, used to the idea, and moved his hand around to the prince's back. He wasn't sure what was going on but he sure as hell was not going to stop it. He kept their lips in their slow, rhythmical movement and let one hand lay under the prince's shoulder blades and another fall down lower onto the curve of his back.

Arthur responded to Merlin's action by putting his own hand on Merlin's neck, not changing the pace of his nervous kissing. His other hand hesitated as it went to Merlin's hair and wove itself in at a place on the back of his head. Merlin reacted by opening his mouth and breathing in from the shock of the pull and the surprise it came with, making his heart race further still.

Arthur had not expected this and in one messy action had let his tongue slip forward. It had touched lips. Lips that were not his. Arthur pulled back. He held out his hands from Merlin's head and neck, hovering them inches away, and leaned backward opening his eyes wide, waiting for Merlin's reaction to what just happened with what he just did with his tongue. It couldn't be good.

Merlin still had his hands on the prince's back and opened his eyes to stare at the boy who just stopped kissing him. The boy who had just entered his mouth with his tongue! Merlin didn't know why he stopped, he just knew he didn't want him to.

Merlin grabbed onto the shirt Arthur was wearing with both hands and pulled him back in, closing his eyes as he went, smashing their lips back together.

Merlin had his top hand still grabbing onto the shirt as he pulled Arthur closer. The kiss was faster but not by much because he was not sure if Arthur pulling away meant that he wanted it to stop. Merlin pulled him even closer by moving his lower hand down until it had reached the bottom of Arthur's currently pulled up shirt. He felt the prince's bare, soft skin of his lower back and decided to grab that with his hand instead of the damp shirt. Arthur responded quickly, pushing Merlin backward with his body until he slammed into one of the chairs surrounding the table. Merlin was grateful because pushing against Arthur's muscles was proving harder to do, he could use the support.

The kiss became even sloppier after that. The initial nerves had worn off and all new sensations were taking place. Some kind of dam had broken.

All of Arthur's frustration seemed to go into this kiss. He took every frustrated or angry thought he had had that day and pushed it back into Merlin using what resources he had at hand; his tongue, his hands, his lips. He ferociously started consuming Merlin. He was in a rush of hormones, feelings, unexplained emotions. He just wanted to keep going and get more and more and more. He moved his hands around everywhere he could reach on Merlin's back, faster and faster, touching him everywhere not caring that his hands kept bumping into the hard chair behind him. His entire body started to move with the kiss now that the chair could support them and he found himself moving into Merlin.

Merlin was a bit shocked at the ferocity Arthur responded to when he touched his bare skin. He responded to the movement of Arthur's body with his own body moving with Arthur and with the kiss. He ignored the slight pain he felt from the chair prodding into his back. He wondered what it would be like if he touched more. Touched different parts of Arthur. He lowered his other hand and put it under the shirt gripping onto more bare skin on the prince's back. Arthur responded again with a grunt and another attack with his lips. Merlin moved his hands around gripping and clutching onto his skin. The pace quickened more and more, their bodies keeping up with the pace of their lips.

Arthur grabbed the back of Merlin's hair and pulled. Merlin's mouth opened further in response and Arthur took the opportunity to dive in and explore. Arthur wanted the taste of Merlin on him. All he could taste right now was a mixture of himself and whiskey. He wanted it all to be Merlin. All Merlin.

Merlin responded to Arthur's demands with his own. His tongue danced along with Arthur's, at times their tongues seemed to forget about kissing and just decided to slide around each other on their own. The movement of their tongues took the attention and caused their bodies to stop moving so their mouths could concentrate. This didn't last long as they longed for the movement and things started heating up again.

All too quickly there was a knock on the door. The guards had come to collect Arthur to bring him to his father for dinner. The boys froze and pulled away from each other turning to stare at the door making sure no one had seen them.

"One moment!" Arthur shouted breathlessly and annoyed. He looked back at Merlin, still in his embrace and pulled away to look at Merlin's face. He stared at Merlin in almost disbelief as to what he just did. To what he just accomplished. This did not make things less confusing. Arthur didn't know what to do so he just kept staring, holding onto Merlin.

Merlin was just as confused. Breathing heavily against the chair. Then there was another knock.

"I said one moment!" Arthur shouted looking at the door.

"I've come to collect you for dinner, sire. The king does not like to be kept waiting!" That guard. He was always rude to Arthur. He'd known him since birth so he thought he could talk to him as if he were a child and not the prince.

Merlin looked at Arthur and saw the same confusion looking back at him. Merlin was still drunk he reminded himself. He should not say anything yet.

Arthur knew he was drunk. Yet somehow he seemed less drunk than before. He didn't want to say anything yet though either.

"Coming." Arthur didn't shout and Merlin wasn't even sure if the guard could hear. Arthur was disappointed that he had to leave. He didn't have time to think during the kiss, didn't have time for any sort of thought other than 'more', and now all the questions started to creep up on him. It was all confusing and he just wanted to stay and figure it out. But he couldn't. Arthur pulled his body away from Merlin, setting him free of his pinning against the chair.

Merlin did not feel pinned though. In fact, he didn't want Arthur to go. He hadn't been thinking when they kissed. He just reacted. Now he didn't know what to do.

The boys stared at each other again. Another knock.

"You should go." Merlin finally said, having less breath than he thought.

"Will you be here when I get back?" Arthur asked hopeful.

"Yes," Merlin nodded. He wasn't sure what was going to happen. Where else would he go now?

Arthur looked at Merlin and hesitated not knowing how to say goodbye. Should he kiss him, hug him, or pat him on the back? He chose to just walk to the door, checking quickly for any erection but it seemed the alcohol was quite strong indeed.

Merlin just heard Arthur tell the guard he was getting dressed as he walked into the hall holding his boots he picked up along the way to the door.

He looked down to see that he himself had started to harden again, even with the alcohol in him. Then the questions really started to pile on. The main one being, _'What now?'_


	6. Trapped Between A Rock And A Hard Place

At first Merlin tried to pace but the alcohol, and his rapid heartbeat, seemed to make that too challenging. Instead he chose to lie down on Arthur's bed. Soon that became too challenging because Arthur's smell surrounded him and he just kept thinking over and over and over again about what had just happened. His mind was spinning. The room was spinning. So he got up and decided to put himself to work.

Usually Arthur's dinners lasted around an hour to an hour and a half. He knew he should be sober by then, though that didn't stop him from looking at his goblet with desire. He could drink a bit more and not have to face what happened or what Arthur had to say when he came back sober, realizing the mistake they made. He shook his head deciding this was a bad idea. If anything he was just going to face what he had to say and do whatever the prince wanted. That was his job after all. He would pretend it never happened and move on by himself.

_'Move on from what?'_

He sighed and started to get rid of the water left in the tub. He tried to whisper the spell that would make it all disappear but his current state wouldn't make the pronunciation come out right. Besides, he knew that he would be left with nothing to do but wait for Arthur so he started the long process of bringing the water out bucket by bucket.

* * *

Arthur was left to face his father, though Morgana had joined them for dinner that evening which brought great relief to him. He did not want his father to know he was drunk, saving himself a lecture about always being prepared for battle. How he managed not to knock anything over so far had astounded him really. He ate slowly, he was not hungry. Sure he had not eaten a lot that day and did a lot of work in training but he had too much on his mind to eat. That and his fork seemed to dance around in front of him every time he brought it to his face.

Uther had noticed and Arthur shrugged him off by saying he was tired from training but that he was fine. He had thought about asking to leave dinner early but wasn't quite sure he trusted his legs. He was still shaky from the experience he had just had with Merlin. Instead he just listened to Uther and Morgana argue about something, he wasn't quite sure what they were arguing about. They always argued and he didn't care at the moment about who was saying what.

Dinner had lasted longer than usual. It had been about two and a half hours before Arthur was leaving the table, having only eaten half of his food. Uther looked at him concerned but Arthur was too determined to say anything. He just bid his good night and walked away. His head was spinning but he was in control of himself again. His composure was back and so was his restraint. He was much more sober. The alcohol could still be felt in his system but it was nowhere near enough to help him face Merlin. He didn't know what he was going to say.

* * *

By the time two hours had passed, Merlin was sober. He sat in front of the fire waiting. After cleaning the tub out and bringing it out of the chamber Merlin had been left alone in the room with nothing to do. He had cleaned Arthur's cambers tenfold and all the bathwater was gone and so was any inclination of a mess that the two had made. There was nothing to do but sit and stare at the fire.

His stomach grumbled as he remembered he had not eaten all day. He glanced back to the bread on the bedside table he had placed out as a part of Arthur's nighttime snack. A bread roll dipped in olive oil sounded delicious to Merlin right now, the olive oil waiting in a jar next to the hunk of bread. He shrugged it off knowing he would not enjoy eating after drinking on an empty stomach and wanted to wait a while longer to make sure all of the alcohol was out of his system.

To pass the time and to help him think he started making animal shapes appear in the fire, his magic finally working properly. First he made a rabbit, then a dog, then a horse, then a man riding the horse, then Arthur's face started to become clear to him. It became even more clear when he shook his head and realized he wasn't just daydreaming about him, he was actually making his face appear in the fire. He was going to make it disappear, not needing the reminder, but found himself entranced by the smile the Arthur in the fire wore and the way the flames danced in his silhouette.

The kiss then popped into Merlin's mind again and after blinking he found himself staring at the image of Arthur and himself kissing. He had projected his memory onto the fire and the flames grew bigger to show the entirety of their bodies lining up, smacking into the furniture. Merlin looked, eyes wide, and waved his hand across the fire as his eyes turned to gold and the image disappeared before grabbing his head in his hands.

Maybe Arthur didn't even remember. Maybe Arthur was so drunk that he couldn't remember. Maybe he could leave and the prince wouldn't even remember asking him to stay. Then again, if he left and Arthur knew he asked for him…well Merlin didn't want to hurt his feeling or reject him after what had just happened. It was a sensitive subject and Merlin needed to talk about it anyway. It was all very confusing.

* * *

Merlin snapped his head up at the sound of Arthur entering the bed chamber. He scrambled to his feet as Arthur started silently closing the door, looking out into the corridor as he did, making sure they were alone and Morgana hadn't decided to chase after him to ask him what was wrong.

The boys looked at each other. They both looked...awkward. Arthur had noticed that Merlin's hair was messier than when he left, or was that all Arthur's doing? Merlin noticed that Arthur looked much more sober than he did when leaving the room and that Arthur did not seem to know where to put his hands.

"Well, um..."Arthur didn't really know what to do or say first.

"Sit?" Merlin asked, saying the first thing on his mind. Sitting would at least make them look less awkward. You can always put your hands on the table.

"Yes, sit." Arthur said it as if it were his idea or his command. Arthur sat in his chair placed at the end of his table turning it to face the fireplace. Merlin sat on the stool he had moved from the bath to the fireplace. The bath was no longer a barrier between the boys and so only thing separating them was the space from where they sat. It was not a large distance. Both glanced at the other, checking the other out for any sign that they would have something to say, both coming up with nothing.

"Well?" Arthur asked Merlin.

"Well what?" Merlin asked, slightly dumbfounded. He had been distracted at noticing that the prince's trousers were on inside out.

"Say something." Arthur commanded Merlin, someone needed to start talking and it wasn't going to be him.

"Me?" Merlin asked annoyed. Why did he have to go first?

"Yes, Merlin. I am your master and…you will talk if I want you to talk." Arthur's sort of command came from a very nervous place and the words came out sloppy and pitiful. Merlin's feelings were a mystery to him and he wasn't even sure how he was feeling himself.

Merlin was at a loss for words, his mouth slung open. "Um..."Arthur looked at him expectantly. "Um..." Merlin didn't know what to say. He just kept staring at Arthur, rubbing his hand across his face. "I need that whiskey," Merlin mumbled to himself but Arthur heard.

"Whiskey?" Arthur said, half hoping it was still around.

Merlin was suddenly inspired. "Yes whiskey!" This had obviously been one idea that popped into his head when he was thinking about things while staring into the fire and entering the conversation in this way was just as good as any other way. "We had a lot to drink."

"Yes we did!" Arthur strung along, glad they were at least addressing it. "A lot!"

"You were drunk!" Merlin spat out.

"I was drunk? You were more drunk than me!"

"You were in fact more drunk than me!" Merlin forcefully stated, he would not get blamed for this as he got blamed for everything else.

"Merlin-"

"Arthur-" Both boys stood at the calling of their name. They stared at each other fuming, both breathing more heavily than before. There was that tension again. That force that seemed to be pulling them together, crackling in the empty space. "I will not take the blame for this-"

"You're the one who got me drunk!" Arthur spat back at him. There was no way this was his fault, Merlin obviously tricked him.

Merlin furiously stepped towards Arthur, matching his shouting with his own. "I always take the blame for everything!" The past had caught up with him. He was not just talking about this or talking about his servant duties but of all the times he saved Arthur's life. He was not an idiot and did not like it when the prince called him one. Without him he would have been dead so many times and he didn't even know it. "I'm not the idiot you think I am Arthur!"

"Well I'm not taking the blame!" Arthur shouted back taking a step forward of his own. He was not a very patient man and anyone who started an argument with him was going to get one. Merlin of all people knew that.

"So neither of us kis-kissed the other?!" It was the first time either had recognized what had happened out loud and he tripped on the word 'kissed' as if it were foreign. It was foreign.

Arthur, recognizing the word, flushed and sputtered, "You kissed me!" all while closing the distance between them and pointing an accusing finger in the face of Merlin. Merlin smacked the pointing hand away not fearing any consequences even though he knew the prince could easily beat him.

"You kissed me." Merlin spat back menacingly, tired of shouting.

It was at that point that boys realized that they were indeed quite close…yet again, finding themselves but inches away from each other. Their body heat was smoldering between the small gap, the fire adding to the mix. Any closer and they would have been leaning against one another.

Merlin's thoughts raced to the kiss from earlier. He remembered the feel of Arthur's mouth exploring his. The feel of his hair being gently pulled as he gripped down on Arthur's smooth skin. Merlin's eyes explored the prince's and, following his train of thought, they traveled from Arthur's face to his chest to his arms to the hem on his shirt.

Arthur too was exploring Merlin with his eyes. He remembered his drunken sloppy kiss, the way Merlin's tongue lazed against his, Merlin's rough skin on his smooth lower back, the feeling of his chest flat against Merlin's, and the easy way in which he curled his hand within his dark black raven hair.

Each one explored the other until they came into eye contact again. Both boys looked at each other's eyes then at the other's lips then back again. Then they just fell into one another.

Merlin's arms flashed back up to where he had thought of placing them. This time knowing exactly where he wanted his hands to go and tucked both under the prince's shirt and onto the skin of his back.

Arthur responded by slamming his body into the pull of Merlin, having his chest lined up perfectly yet again being careful to move his hips back so they did not touch Merlin's. It may have been an awkward position of him but he didn't know what he was thinking let alone what Merlin was thinking.

Their kisses were better now, not quite so sloppy but still rough and needy and hungry. Arthur thought of how much he wanted this. How much more he wanted. He ran both hands up to Merlin's hair and trailed one down so that it slid against Merlin's neck down to his chest and bent his elbow so that his arm could lie upon Merlin's chest in between them. He was sure Merlin was thinking that he was trying to push him away and grabbed onto the back of Merlin's hair to try and sway him otherwise, making him stay put and causing Merlin's mouth to open in response. The time spent kissing madly but standing still, both expecting the other to push them away at any second, ended and their tongues started a whole new rhythm.

Arthur did use his hand lying on Merlin's chest to push him, not away, but to push him backwards until Merlin hit the wall close to the fireplace. Along the way Merlin's leg hit the fire irons and the rods went crashing down for the second time that day. He paid no attention to it but sent all his focus to the boy backing him against the wall trying to grasp at him so that he wouldn't trip backwards.

Merlin tried to kiss well but he knew he wasn't very good at it. He hadn't really done it that much before. He had only kissed one girl his entire life and that was a passing fling that didn't last very long. He stopped caring if he was doing okay when Arthur's hips pressed into his own. Merlin felt his blood pump and his breathing deepen as he felt Arthur's hardening self rub onto his own forming erection. He didn't even realize he was getting so turned on by this, being stuck between the wall and Arthur's hardening member. ' _Trapped between a rock and a hard place.'_ Merlin smiled to himself. He liked the rush it gave him when Arthur slammed into him. He wanted more.

Arthur hadn't meant to slam so forcefully into Merlin but he wasn't quite sure what to do with himself. He felt as though he had started to slip backwards, his hips in their awkward position and his hands imbalanced on Merlin, so he decided to put a little more body weight in. He didn't expect to feel the rush he did at doing so. It had turned him on so much and he was so confused by it. He had never been attracted to a man before. He hadn't expected to yearn so much or to get hard for one. He wanted more.

Both boys started to move their hips into the other at the same time. Arthur put his hands on the wall behind Merlin to steady himself and Merlin was stuck pressing his body out as much as he could under the boy's weight. Merlin clawed his nails deeper into Arthur's back with every stroke forward and Arthur felt all the more pushed every time Merlin's fingers dug into him. Merlin's hands climbed higher each time he replaced them on Arthur's back and growled when he realized the shirt was getting in the way of him feeling Arthur's soft skin. It kept struggling under his fingers and it was trapping his arms. Merlin pushed the shirt up unsure of how to tell Arthur he wanted it off. Arthur seemed to read his mind and he lifted his arms allowing the shirt to be lifted over his head and tossed on the floor next to them. Merlin kept kissing him, getting messier with the more turned on he got.

By this time both boys had full erections, hard and throbbing. The stroking of their hips started to get quicker and quicker until it developed into a type of thrusting. The kisses were mixed in with moans and the short, quick exhales of breath from each motion.

Eventually Merlin was too distracted by the throbbing he felt to be able to kiss anymore. He turned his face away and leaned his head against the stone wall behind him trying to catch his breath. He let his moans come out of him, he wasn't sure he could contain them anyway. His arms fell from the bare back of the prince and fell against the wall in an attempt to get more leverage with his thrusts and to stop from slipping further down the wall. He felt some pain from the scratches and bruises that lined his arms but he was too busy to be thinking of any new scratches he'd get. He didn't care.

Arthur felt empty at the lack of Merlin's tongue in his mouth or hands on his back. He leaned his forehead against Merlin's letting his heavy breath come out of him as he thrust and Merlin thrust back. The skin of his arms scratched against the wall supporting him.

Merlin looked down at the boy in front of him and saw his bare skin reflecting the glow of the fire they were so close to. No wonder it was so hot. Merlin pushed forward with his arms in an attempt to move them further from the fire. Arthur stepped back from Merlin towards the fire with an unsure, scared look on his face. He looked at Merlin. Merlin just half smiled at the worry on the prince's face. It was not every day that he got to see the prince worried about something he was doing. Well…yes it was, but this was different.

In a grace Merlin had never seen of himself before he walked around to the prince's side and in one move he turned the boy around and pushed him back against the wall he was just leaning against, Arthur knocking over the stool in the process. He made sure they were a little further from the fire than they were before but the heat didn't seem to go away though. He kissed him a few more times before he reached for his neck and tore off his favorite red scarf and tossed it near Arthur's shirt. Or at least he thought he did. He wasn't completely sure.

In their turned around positions Merlin was nervous. He was now in control and he really didn't know what to do. He went back to kissing Arthur not wanting to grind against him again without being sure of himself. How Arthur knew what he was doing, he didn't really want to know. He leaned his hands against the wall in an attempt to steady himself and stayed the safe route.

Arthur hadn't expected the change of position. Especially not from Merlin. He did not hate it though. He kissed Merlin back, placing his hands on Merlin in a similar position Merlin had done to him only outside his shirt, gripping his clothes tight. It just didn't work for him though. He wanted more of Merlin. He started to lift Merlin's shirt up and Merlin got the idea, lifting his arm.

As the shirt was tossed aside, Arthur noticed that Merlin's scarf was missing too, exposing Merlin's neck. He reached out and with strong muscles wrapped his arms around Merlin's back and pulled him close. Merlin smashed into Arthur but instead of kisses, like he expected, he felt teeth closing in on the crook of his neck. Arthur moved his hands further down on Merlin, pulling him into him, not letting him go as he kissed, and bit, and sucked on the soft skin there.

Merlin was letting out audible moans, trapped tight in the prince's arms where couldn't move very much. He grabbed onto the sides of Arthur, as that was all he could do, and bent his head so that he could have easier access. His eyes rolled back into his head as Arthur continued, loving what was happening. This teasing pain sent waves of desire through his body and he moved with the waves, squirming in Arthur's tight grip. He wanted more too. Always wanted more. He leaned further into Arthur.

Arthur loved the salty taste of Merlin's skin in his mouth. One hand steadied Merlin's neck for him and the other trailed down further on Merlin's wriggling body until he ran out of bare skin and came upon a body part he not thought much about before when it came to Merlin. He slid his hand on the outside of Merlin's trousers grabbing his arse, digging his fingers into the mushy flesh. Merlin let out another loud moan. Arthur took that sound and moved his other hand quickly down to the other side of Merlin and dug both hands into the boy's arse. Arthur had his power back. He stopped sucking at Merlin's neck, a mark that was sure to leave a bruise to match the rest of him, to move his lips to Merlin's mouth. A small chuckle escaped Arthur at the thought of what Merlin would look like if he left more bruises like that and what people would think happened to him.

"What?" Merlin barely had a voice and it came out as a whisper, as soft as when he would say a spell but much more breathless.

Arthur smiled and growled back. "Nothing." He wrapped his own hands together and grabbed his own arms underneath Merlin's arse bending down. He stood up and lifted the young sorcerer off the ground, still kissing him as he went. He was tired of being pinned and wanted a change. He stumbled around the chamber not sure of where he wanted to go. It didn't really matter. Merlin didn't weigh that much for Arthur. While he was too preoccupied to see around him he managed to knock them into more chairs surrounding his table causing something, he didn't care what, to fall off of it and as he pushed from the table and walked to the other side of the chamber he knocked into the basket that held his dirty armor from the day. He was making a mess.

Merlin found himself being lifted in the air, knocking into things, headed towards…he wasn't sure where. That was until he was slammed up against the dresser where Arthur's clothes were kept. He was pinned, his legs wrapped around Arthur's waist in an attempt to help with the weight and to steady himself. He continued to kiss Arthur, his tongue coming back into focus. It was much easier to focus now that he was being held up, completely supported by Arthur's arms. It gave him a good opportunity to explore with his own. He moved his hands across Arthur's shoulders up into his blonde messy hair where he tried grabbing a bit. Arthur's response was a small grunt and to lean farther into Merlin. Merlin decided to see what would happen if he pulled the blonde's hair harder, just a bit harder. The result was Arthur's knees buckling and Merlin sliding down the cabinet. Arthur's mouth had fallen open and he stopped kissing. Merlin peeked his eyes open to only to see the lust in Arthur's as he stared back with his half smile.

"Well if you're going to do that..." Arthur didn't finish his sentence. He picked Merlin back up and swung him around to the bed where he dropped him. Arthur paused to look at the boy on his bed, legs flopping off the edge and torso laid out for him to appreciate. His hair was messy, sticking up around his head. The dark eye matched shadows streaming down across his angled face and his neck was red and blotchy from the mark Arthur had started to leave. He looked down his small lean body seeing the scratches and bruises lining his arms from the dungeon and maybe from the other things he had slammed him into that night. He looked like he had been in a fight. Merlin's trousers were also sliding down and his hip bones were popping through angling Arthur's vision down to the bulge visibly poking out. It was unknown territory for Arthur. Anything he had ever done before had been with a girl. He had never had to face something like this. It scared him but looking down at that bulge his blood pumped again and he wanted more. He needed more.

The fire glowed in Arthur's eyes as Merlin watched him from the bed. Arthur reached out and ran a hand from Merlin's neck down his chest, down his stomach to the edge of his trousers following the path that he had just viewed with his eyes. Merlin wanted more than anything for them to be ripped off. Not only were they holding back his throbbing cock but he wanted more of Arthur and the answer seemed to be in less clothing.

"If you don't..." Arthur's voice came out in a whisper, not looking directly at Merlin but staring down where his fingers lingered. "If you aren't alright with..."

"Arthur." Merlin knew what he was asking and he wanted him to know that he was more than fine with what was going on. They were both to blame this time. "It's alright."

"Are you sure?"

Merlin melted inside from the look Arthur gave him. "Yes." He said as he grabbed the prince's hand and pulled it above him so that Arthur would fall on top of him, lining their faces for a reassuring kiss. Arthur smiled at Merlin's response, very relieved and glad Merlin didn't have a problem with what was going on. He was confused, Merlin was confused. There would be another time to think out why they were doing what they were doing.

Thoughts were far from intellectual in either of the boys' minds. They were acting on what they wanted. Something they had not done together before. Merlin wanted Arthur. Arthur wanted Merlin. There was no question of if it was right or wrong or if they liked boys or even if they liked each other. They knew it was what they wanted. Questions could come later. Now was the time for them to get what they wanted. What they needed.

Merlin felt that he should reassure Arthur in his actions more. He moved his hands down the smooth back of Arthur until he reached the boy's trousers. He had already seen Arthur naked, twice, in that one day, so Arthur shouldn't feel awkward about it. Merlin bent so he could reach Arthur's trousers' string. He had to stop kissing in order to reach and try and undo the knot Arthur made and Arthur started his sucking on the other side of Merlin's neck. While Arthur was preoccupied with his neck, Merlin's eyes glowed their golden color with a small use of magic in order to undo the knot Arthur created when he tied his trousers drunk. How he managed to tie them while inside out was beyond Merlin. In order to grab the trousers to get them off Merlin sat up making Arthur stand and lean against the side of the bed. Merlin's legs brushed against his and the back of Merlin's hands slid against the sensitive area around Arthur's hip bones as he pulled the trousers away and down.

Arthur felt what Merlin was doing and felt too nervous to look or help and that's why preoccupied himself with Merlin's neck again. He wasn't going to say no to what Merlin was doing and he didn't want Merlin to think he was uncomfortable. He just closed his eyes and let Merlin do what he wanted.

Merlin knew Arthur was nervous when the trousers fell, so to calm him Merlin leaned back from Arthur's biting and took up Arthur's face in his hands. He started kissing Arthur slowly. Well, slower than they had been when pinned.

Arthur slowly recognized that he had to take off his boots and did so. All that was left was his tights, not leaving much to the imagination as his erection was quite visible now.

Merlin kept kissing Arthur waiting for him to make the next move. Arthur was not sure he was ready to be naked in front of Merlin…again. He was so embarrassed the first time. He wasn't so much when he was drunk. If only he could take a swig of that whiskey. But there was no alcohol and he ran his hands down Merlin's side until he came upon the boy's hips, his thumbs finding the indent in the inner parts of Merlin's hip bones. It wasn't hard to do. Merlin was so skinny he could easily fit his hand around him.

Merlin grabbed Arthur's lower lip in his teeth and Arthur squeezed his thumbs making a moan escape both of them at the same time and both leaned back a moment to look at the other with a smile on their face.

Merlin sat up and slid from the bed to stand and led Arthur's right hand to where his trousers tied while he explored Arthur's face for any regret or hesitance and stepped out of his own boots and kicked them aside. He wasn't sure what made him so brave. He was still nervous but he expected Arthur to take control. It must have had to do with the magic in him. It probably was magic.

Arthur tentatively untied Merlin's trousers as he stared into Merlin's eyes. All they needed was a slight pull and he let them fall from the boy's waist. Merlin's legs were so lean they didn't need much help on the way down. Arthur then leaned up to kiss him again.

Merlin took the opportunity to step out of his trousers and sit on the bed again. He wanted to lie down. He didn't have enough blood in his body to stand correctly. He didn't know how Arthur could stand or how he could have picked him up. With that thought Merlin decided it was a good idea. He should join him on the bed. He pushed back from Arthur and slid onto it the entire way. Left in his tights, he moved back until he was in a correct position with his head on the pillows and his feet towards the fire and his heart started beating fast from nerves. Arthur was meant to be the brave one. He reached out a hand to invite Arthur onto the bed with him.

Arthur followed the outstretched hand and crawled on top of the bed, on top of Merlin. He lined his hips up with the boys perfectly and kissed him back up to a quicker speed. All he wanted was to touch the boy under him.

Merlin wrapped his arms around him as he had done before and his legs bent up to easier accept the weight of the boy on top of him. This time he felt free to explore the prince and moved his hands all over, trying to memorize every curve of his back. He had never touched him like this before and wanted to remember it. Needed to.

Arthur kept running his hands over Merlin's scalp, teasing the hair next to his ear. Merlin gave a short raspy gasp when Arthur trailed a finger around the outside his ear. Arthur did it again, barely touching Merlin and running his fingertips along the outside of his ear down to his earlobe. Merlin got chills which was odd considering how hot he felt. Arthur smiled into Merlin's lips and pulled away. Merlin looked up longingly at Arthur wondering what the boy was going to do next.

Arthur wanted another reaction out of Merlin and he thought he would find it by replacing his fingertips on Merlin's ear with his tongue. He got what he wanted. As the rough of Arthur's tongue teased Merlin's ear, the boy arched his back and let out a soft moan. Arthur let a small sigh of laughter escape from his lips, the small wave of air hitting Merlin's now wet ear causing another rush of chills to come out from the young boy. Merlin wondered if he could have the same effect on Arthur. He had only been kissing Arthur's mouth. He wondered what would happen if he tried somewhere else.

Merlin glanced down and Arthur took another turn at teasing Merlin's ear causing him to buck up again. Merlin saw where the prince's neck connected to his shoulder. There was a small indent over the collarbone. Merlin reached down and sunk his teeth into that exact spot.

Arthur had to stop what he was doing and he wriggled on top of Merlin. Merlin tried sucking where he was biting and caused Arthur to moan right near his ear. Motivated by the close proximity of this, Merlin swept his tongue down over the same spot. Arthur responded by grabbing onto Merlin's ear with his teeth and sucking. Merlin had to stop what he was doing to Arthur, being distracted by Arthur's latest switch. He didn't want to stop though. If only he was in control. This was an odd game of tug-of-war.

Merlin put down his legs and took his right arm off of Arthur's back and started pushing him to let him know that he wanted to be on top now. Arthur was barely moved by the arm and laughed in his ear.

"I don't think so Merlin," Arthur teased as he continued to play with his ear.

Merlin gave him a look that he couldn't see and the sorcerer pushed again. This time he may have had a bit of help as his eyes glowed golden. As long as Arthur didn't see, he didn't have to know. And Merlin was pretty sure Arthur was too busy to see. Arthur just looked a bit shocked to be on his back. It was here where Merlin was grateful the prince's bed was so much bigger than his own. Otherwise he may have just slammed Arthur into the floor. That would have been interesting.

"Hey!" Arthur looked up at the skinny kid who had just pushed him off. That didn't seem possible. Arthur searched Merlin confused. Maybe he was stronger than he looked.

Merlin closed off any retort from Arthur by shutting him up with his mouth. He also straddled the boy, sinking down so his weight was on top of him as Arthur reached up to embrace Merlin and closed any other space between them.

Merlin released his mouth from Arthur's, feeling Arthur's hands move to his mid-back, and ran his lips down to Arthur's neck. He moved his lips gliding them up and down repetitively. After Arthur struggled a bit under the torturous anticipation, Merlin chose a spot halfway down his neck where his jugular started to bulge and bit down hard. Arthur bucked up hard, reminding them both of the aching erections they both still had. Merlin kept sucking away, not caring to regard that part of himself or Arthur just yet. He wasn't sure how and he was too busy trying to not be nervous. The way to not be nervous was to not think. The way to not think was to get things going again.

Arthur was surprised at how it felt to be in this position. He was usually always the one in charge and this was definitely different. Merlin was making him squirm. Merlin! That was also something new. Or was it? Arthur started to heat up again and he stared down to look at himself to see if he was as red hot as he felt. What he saw was Merlin's slender body lined against his and his head rearing against his flesh. Arthur moaned out loud and returned his gaze to the ceiling, closing his eyes as the bruise started to form. He couldn't see that much from this angle anyway.

Merlin started to get hungry for more than just the prince's neck. He didn't want to go back to teasing him like Arthur had done to his ear. He wasn't patient enough for that. Instead he moved his head down sliding his body down with him, kissing Arthur's chest from side to side, up and down. Merlin's eyes were closed and didn't realize he had come across Arthur's sensitive nipples until he heard the gasp. Merlin ran his rough tongue back against the same spot, earning an extra squeeze from Arthur's hand on his back. Merlin did it again this time circling and then biting. Arthur's hand flung up into Merlin's hair and pulled. Merlin's mouth flung open and he pulled his head back off his chest.

Arthur was tired of having someone else having all the fun. He pulled Merlin up to the side of him and he pushed himself onto his own side facing Merlin. With the force of a warrior he grabbed Merlin and slid him in closing any distance they had between them, attacking his mouth. Things got hot fast.

Merlin did not complain. He opened his mouth willingly and participated extensively. He grabbed Arthur's bottom lip in his teeth and sucked causing the prince's hands to fall down on Merlin. Down his side, around his back, still going down, down until his hands reached fabric.

Arthur was nervous. He was getting a lot of new sensations. He slid a finger around the lining of the top of Merlin's tights not knowing what he wanted. He wanted more. He knew that, but was this it? Did he want _this_? He thought he did, but did Merlin? His finger dipped underneath and kept following the path of the rim of the tights, caressing the spots where they hugged Merlin's skin.

Merlin felt the finger teasing his skin, knowing what it was asking. Merlin nodded against Arthur's face to answer the unasked question. Arthur pulled back to see if he was imagining things or not. Merlin nodded quickly again and pulled Arthur's face back into his own moving his body higher on the bed.

They smashed lips and teeth and tongues as Arthur's hand slid down under the tights fitting a thumb over them and pulling them down. He could only reach down to get them to Merlin's knees and he saw Merlin's foot coming up to help. He also saw Merlin's member hard, bouncing up against his body and his heart leapt as he went back to pulling Merlin into him.

Merlin was freed from the restricting fabric and more sensitive than ever. He moved his body downward to match where he had been and felt Arthur's soft skin from his stomach slide against the extra sensitive skin topping his cock. Merlin let out a sigh of want and pleasure until he hit the fabric his legs were touching. The fabric of the tights did not feel as good as Arthur's skin, even if he could feel Arthur's erection underneath. Merlin moved his hands down the prince as they kept up their oral attack and without apology started to take off Arthur's tights. Arthur pulled back from the kiss nervously.

"I've already done it once today, sire," Merlin said doing his best to sound teasing and hopefully seductive. Merlin was sure Arthur didn't care what he sounded like though. He added the sire at the end, whether Arthur wanted him to or not, just as an extra tease.

Arthur wasn't sure if it was the blatant fact that Merlin had indeed done this earlier today, though in much more different circumstances, or the way he called him ' _sire_ ' that turned him onto the idea more. Arthur slid up higher to help Merlin and moved a hand down to help himself. After some trouble, due to the distraction of Merlin's face on his own, Arthur got his tights off and slid his body up against Merlin. Merlin did not have smooth skin all over like he did but he felt worthy all the same. Arthur let out a grunted sigh as he slid back into his own position wrapping his arm around Merlin to pull him closer. This time his erection collided with Merlin's and both boys let out their own small moan into each other's lips. They started to slide their hips against each other trying to achieve the same sensation.

Arthur pushed up again and rounded himself on top of Merlin pushing him down into the bed on his back. Merlin couldn't do much but try and buck up into Arthur's weight with the use of his bent knees as he ground down against him. The sensation moved through Merlin's body and the pleasurable waves caused him to dig hard into Arthur's bare back, harder than before and harder than he intended. Many things were harder than intended. His nails bit down leaving long scratches. In order to stop hurting Arthur and to stop leaving scratches, Merlin pushed his arms to the side and grabbed the bed sheets underneath.

Arthur had been doing something similar with the pillows above them until he realized Merlin's hands were gone. He let his arms go, letting all body weight go, to grab Merlin's wrists. He wanted to make a motion for Merlin to understand that he wanted his hands back but was distracted when he had Merlin's wrists in his hands. It was eerily similar to the day before when he had him pinned in the dungeon. Of course then they were on a cold, hard floor and had clothes on. Now all he felt was heat and sensations people can feel only feel when this close with someone else. Inspired by the thought, Arthur lifted Merlin's arms and pinned his wrists above him on the bed board.

Merlin whimpered with the movement feeling so vulnerable, so controlled, so open, so...turned on. He kept whimpering as Arthur moved his mouth over to the spot under his ear and bit down. Merlin bucked up harder and faster moving as much as he could manage.

Arthur laughed into his ear, "Calm down Merlin." There was a giant smile on the prince's face as he started to nibble on the boy's ear.

"You want me- To calm down-" Merlin wanted to laugh himself and was breathing hard, saying words in between shallow breaths. "When you have me like this-" Merlin lifted his hands a bit, pushing against Arthur's hands in order to indicate the pinning of his wrists. "And you say my name?"

Arthur lifted his lips to Merlin's ear again, the smile returning to his face. "Merlin, Merlin, Merlin," He purred with every chant.

With that rush of adrenaline at the sound of his name Merlin pushed against Arthur's grip, got his hands free and really started to feel him hard and fast. He moved every part of himself underneath him as fast as his body would allow him. From the mouth he was becoming all too accustom to, to his legs where Merlin kept running a foot up and down his calf, to roaming further, down to Arthur's arse. He gripped into the newly uncovered flesh causing Arthur to wriggle more than he already was at Merlin's touch. He let his hands fall to the sides of Arthur's hips and took his right hand down inches further, his thumb laying over where their bodies met.

Arthur didn't even slow his pace as he pulled Merlin back onto his side, following his lead, moving his hips back so that he was not directly lined against Merlin's body.

Merlin moved his thumb in and down until his hand was centered between the prince's hip bones. Slowly, unsure of what he was doing, he moved his hand down, down until he slid onto Arthur's hard, thick, throbbing member. He wrapped his hand around Arthur, knowing the general idea, but he had obviously never done this to another boy. Merlin moved his hand up the prince's shaft until he reached the head of the aching cock and slowly pushed down until he reached the base again. Arthur's mouth had stopped attacking Merlin and fell open instead. Merlin opened his eyes to watch his face. He moved up to the head again squeezing tighter than he had the first time. Arthur's eyes remained closed but he grimaced in pleasure. Merlin smiled a moment and then moved his hand to the base again, this time faster than before. Arthur let out a small shallow yelp of breath and Merlin smiled again. He felt powerful, in control, and moved his hand to the tip of Arthur's cock smearing it with pre-cum. He ignored his own member which was aching for the same treatment and concentrated on Arthur. He moved his hand at an even pace with a slow rhythm. He wasn't sure if he was doing something Arthur liked and he also kind of liked to torture the prince in this teasingly slow way.

Arthur couldn't think strait. He just closed his eyes and rocked his hips into Merlin's hand. He wanted him to go faster, longer but he couldn't say anything for fear of the loud noises that would come out. He just groaned out with each movement. He knew he wanted Merlin to feel the same thing but he wasn't sure if he could do that currently. He wanted to try and so he took advantage of Merlin pausing to get a better grip and moved his own hand down on Merlin. Merlin paused, hand still stroking Arthur, but much, much slower. He was distracted at the hand currently rounding his hip bone down to his own erection. He wanted it badly but he knew he couldn't focus on Arthur if he touched him like that. He hoped Arthur knew that.

Arthur's hand coiled around Merlin and moved at a similar pace Merlin was stroking him. Soon the two were stroking each other in unison. Both were breathing audibly and the moans improved their speed.

After a few minutes of this antagonizing, teasing hand game they were playing with each other, Arthur decided to step it up. He always wanted more and he was not going to think twice about it. He took his hand off Merlin, with Merlin giving a protesting groan, and ran his hand down Merlin's arm to where his hand was currently pleasuring him. He lifted it from the wrist and used the arm to turn Merlin over to the side and to his back. He then pushed himself up and straddled Merlin, leaning over to put an arm under the boy so he could lift him higher into the pillows on the bed.

Merlin was now almost sitting up and was staring at Arthur expectantly. He liked what they were just doing and wasn't sure why they stopped.

Arthur kissed Merlin softly now. This was an unfortunate change in pace from what they were just doing. It went from a mêlée to a cease-fire. Arthur was trying to reassure him that good things were coming. He moved his hand off Merlin's wrist and put his arm to Merlin's side and did the same with the other arm sliding it out from under the boy's body. Merlin sank into the slow teasing kiss and gently wrapped his arm so that it slung from Arthur's shoulders. His other arm lazed at Arthur's neck.

Arthur started to move from Merlin's mouth down to his neck, down to his chest. Merlin lazed his arms, both now one on either shoulder of Arthur, so that they would move where he did. Arthur kissed Merlin's chest as Merlin had done to him earlier, making sure to check on Merlin's nipples with his tongue and a small clip of his teeth. He felt Merlin's fingers tighten into his shoulders and he moved down to Merlin's stomach taking pleasure in taking big bites of the soft, mushy skin. He went down further, down to where Merlin's hip bones jutted out. He kissed the bone from the outside in, following the path Merlin had traced with his thumb on his own hip bone.

From the bone towards the center of Merlin's body, Merlin was shown to be physically tensing from anticipation. Arthur slowed his kisses and bit down on that center spot getting a hard squeeze from Merlin's hands. He moved down until there was nowhere to go but up Merlin's erection. Arthur found himself in an awkward position as his bed was not too long and so he folded his knees up underneath himself. He kept one arm on the bed for support and brought his right hand back to the spot it had been pleasing Merlin. Holding Merlin's erection in hand he moved his mouth up to the head.

Arthur's stomach was twisted in knots. He had never done this before. Never really thought about how it was done before. He just knew he really liked it so Merlin should too. Another whimper escaped Merlin's lips and Arthur looked up at the boy in front of him. Merlin was looking down towards him with something mixed with anticipation, nerves, hormones, and shock. The whimper was all Arthur needed as he opened his mouth and took in Merlin's head. He held the erection still and moved his tongue around the part of Merlin that was now inside of him. A deep sigh/moan combination came from Merlin and Arthur started to move his mouth down, closing his lips over his teeth. He moved down slowly taking in as much of Merlin as he could comfortably and Merlin's hands grabbed the bed sheet surrounding him in a firm grasp. Arthur moved back up and down slowly until he thought he could handle this foreign object in his mouth. He started to move faster and moved his hand up and down with the movements of his head. Merlin was no longer holding back sounds as moan after moan were heard escaping him. Arthur moved faster, ignoring the thought of wanting to be touched himself, and faster until Merlin started to move his hips up into his movements. Arthur was caught off guard and had to pull away in order to not have his gag reflex induced and avoid getting choked.

Merlin seemed to grasp he should not move so much and focused his energy into gripping the bed sheets. It wasn't enough, he wanted more. He moved his hands off the bed and grabbed Arthur's hair, pulling him down farther on himself. Arthur pulled back again and slowed until Merlin removed his hands. The moans were getting longer and his body was having a harder time staying still. Words were escaping his mouth. Moans of ' _Ohhh_ ' and ' _Mmm_ ' and ' _Yes_ ' were escaping his lips until...

"Arthur," A moaning whisper escaped Merlin's lips and Arthur lifted his head to see what he had done. He thought he may have done something wrong or hurt Merlin so he pulled himself up off of him and leaned up to see what was wrong. Merlin groaned in frustration and pulled Arthur by the hair to meet his lips. He couldn't be left like that. He kissed Arthur roughly. "You stopped," Merlin breathed out between kisses.

"I thought-" Arthur said breathless and confused. Merlin groaned in response and leaned against Arthur pushing him onto his own back. His hand didn't hesitate as it went down to Arthur's member. He stroked him rigorously as he kissed him heavily, grinding his body up against his side.

Arthur wasn't quite sure how to react, there was so much happening at once. He just let his hands grip down into Merlin's back and help the boy with his multitasking by helping with the back and forth movement of his body.

Merlin had to move his hand off Arthur to support himself getting onto Arthur properly and to grind closer. He thought about returning Arthur's actions from before and to find his mouth on him, pleasuring him in the same terribly overwhelming way he had moments ago. Merlin moved his mouth to Arthur's neck and bit, sucking himself down so as to steady his body, and his nerves.

Arthur's hands slid down, down on Merlin's back, grabbing his arse in his hands. Merlin gave a rather hard bite and Arthur's right hand slid down even further from the luscious pain. He found his hand lying in between Merlin's cheeks, his ring finger laying over Merlin's entrance. Arthur paused. He wasn't sure what Merlin's reaction would be to his thought. His thought of how good it would feel to have his aching member wrapped up inside of Merlin.

Merlin paused at Arthur's lack of movement and pulled away from his neck. He thought he knew what Arthur wanted and was definitely terrified at the thought. He was not a complete idiot, he knew how that worked. He just didn't want Arthur to see how anxious he was. Instead he removed his hand from the bed and grabbed onto Arthur's waist, pulling his body closer.

Arthur's hand did not move.

Merlin gently placed his lips on Arthur's, tenderer than before. He worked his mouth slowly for fear that going too fast would cause him to show how nervous he was or bite Arthur's lips again.

Arthur still had not moved. He wanted it but was too nervous to act. Merlin's slow kiss was brilliant and just what he needed. He kissed back slowly and felt Merlin's body move to the side, pulling him up to his side as well. His hand stayed in the same place. He didn't dare move it. He kissed back and felt Merlin's hand move from his waist further around his back, onto his arse, onto his...

Merlin had decided that it was best to show Arthur it was okay rather than to let this slow kiss go on. He was still hard but was calming down and he didn't want to calm down completely in case either of them changed their minds. He moved his hand into a mirror position of Arthur's on his, moving his fingers down until they reached Arthur's entrance. He did not know what to do at this point so he just moved his fingers. He tried to be gentle and just really wasn't sure what else to do. Arthur was deepening the kiss but still had not moved on his own. Merlin got an idea. He had just experienced what a man's mouth could do so maybe if he did the same while experimenting with this newfound area, they could discover some courage.

Merlin abruptly pulled away from Arthur's mouth and pulled his hands back so that they were on Arthur's chest. Arthur's hands sprang back from the sudden movement, a look of shock and fear coming across his face. Had he gone too far?

Merlin pushed him onto his back and didn't even bother kissing his way down on the boy. He moved himself so he was down in a crouching position, his head close to Arthur's hips. He looked up at Arthur, looking down at him, and took as much of Arthur as he could into his mouth without so much as a warning. He steadied himself with his hands supporting him on either side of Arthur as Arthur's hips bucked up into the air in surprise.

"Oh Gods!" Arthur had not expected something like that to happen so quickly. He wanted to continue what he was doing before, he had almost been ready to make a move with his hand, but if this was what Merlin wanted to do instead, that was okay with him.

Once Merlin had a steady rhythm going with his head, he moved so that he could be crouched over without needing support from his hands. He moved his left hand to hold onto Arthur's member so that he could steady the movements of his mouth further. He moved his right hand on Arthur's inner thigh, moving it in continuous circles. He knew what he wanted to do but he wasn't sure if Arthur would be okay with it.

Arthur's moans couldn't be kept inside. He felt Merlin's hand rubbing inside his thigh and he was losing it. He rocked up into Merlin's mouth faster and faster.

Merlin moved his hand off the prince's thigh onto his rocking hips and pushed down on them, hoping Arthur would get the idea. Arthur's movements slowed and Merlin decided it was safe to move his hand down, past Arthur's thigh. His thumb trailed down first, rounding Arthur's package, in between Arthur's legs when Arthur moaned loudly. Merlin traced his way back again pressing down finding a small bump. Arthur moaned louder. He made gentle circles around that spot moving his head up and down in unison. Arthur was losing it again and so Merlin took the pressure off and slowed the movements of his mouth.

"Merrrlin," Arthur groaned out loud from the frustration of having to slow down. He just wanted him to continue what he was doing. Merlin smiled and let out a small chuckle as he looked up at the man in his mouth. Arthur looked down and saw Merlin's naked body leaning over him and his mouth full, eyes staring up. Merlin made eye contact with Arthur for a moment and each saw the desire in the other's eyes. Merlin moved again and Arthur's head slammed back into the pillow, his hands grabbing the bed sheets, the image he just saw sticking in his mind, making it harder and harder to control himself.

Merlin took the encouragement of Arthur's look and moved his thumb down, past that bump of pure ecstasy, down to Arthur's hole. His thumb lying on top of it, Arthur moaned aloud again. Merlin moved his thumb in small circles, keeping a slow pace, and moving his head slowly. Arthur's body started to shift around underneath him. It didn't act like before though. The motion was more side to side, Arthur's body was circling with Merlin's thumb. Merlin took his mouth from Arthur so he could ask, "Is this okay?", concern in his voice. He had never done this, never had this done, he wasn't sure if it was pleasant, let alone comfortable.

"Oh Merlin-" Arthur responded as he sat himself up, leaned over and grabbed Merlin's shoulders all in one move. He pulled Merlin up above him, his broad muscles not letting Merlin fight him and brought him down on top of him kissing him ferociously. Arthur wanted to be in charge. He had decided that what he wanted was exactly what he was going to get. This boy in his arms was someone he wanted so badly. His hands pinned Merlin against him sliding down on Merlin's back to his arse.

Merlin didn't know how to respond to what had just happened. Arthur's voice sounded like he was happy with what Merlin was doing but then why did he take him away? Merlin was still stunned at being pinned at this angle and decided to just grab Arthur's shoulders. How did Arthur manage to find all these new ways to pin him down?

Arthur moved his middle finger down the center of Merlin until it reached his hole. He made small circles around it hoping Merlin would be okay with the new action.

Merlin just kissed Arthur not really knowing what he should do. He smiled into Arthur's mouth as he felt his finger circling. He realized Arthur just wanted to be the one in control. Surprise, surprise.

Arthur pulled his head back to look at Merlin's smile. All Merlin did was roll his eyes and go back to kissing Arthur. Arthur shrugged it off and went back to concentrating on his hand. He pushed his hips into Merlin's and Merlin repeated the motion back. The pressure and the warmth of their bodies drove him even crazier. He increased the pressure of his finger until he could start to feel Merlin opening for him.

Arthur switched fingers down to his pinky and started to repeat the motion again putting more and more pressure down until he curved his hand and Merlin opened enough for his finger to slip inside. Merlin froze above him, his face squinting down. It didn't hurt Merlin but it wasn't exactly something he was used to. After a few seconds Merlin relaxed and went back to kissing Arthur. Arthur started to move his pinky up and down slowly inside of him. His finger was in a tight embrace for a minute or two before Merlin relaxed all the way and allowed Arthur to move inside him freely. Arthur took advantage of his relaxation and removed his pinky so that he could move his middle finger to take its place. As he did so Merlin moved up and away from him. This was certainly bigger than a pinky. It still didn't really hurt but this was most definitely uncomfortable. Arthur did not move his finger and waited for Merlin to relax again. When Merlin returned to kissing him, he moved his hand again. Merlin pulled away again, his face squinting.

"What's wrong?" Arthur asked worry in his voice.

"Nothing, it's just-" Merlin replied still squinting.

"Do you want to stop?" Arthur was masking the disappointment in his voice.

"No," Merlin said making himself not squint. "No, but is there something to...I don't know...something to um..." Merlin wasn't quite sure _what_ he was asking for until he started to look around the room. He saw on the bed-side table the olive oil he had placed next to the bread. Merlin moved his arm up and realized he couldn't reach it.

Arthur followed Merlin's reach with his eyes but couldn't see what he wanted so he removed his hand from the boy and let him get up.

Merlin got up off of Arthur and the bed, his legs more wobbly than he needed and reached for the jar containing the olive oil. He turned to face Arthur who had turned his body to its side leaning on his elbow looking over towards him. Merlin took this moment to take in the boy stretched out on the bed before him. The fire had died down most of the way but the moonlight was coming in through the windows across the bed. Arthur's skin glowed faintly in its light. He was glistening from the sweat the boys had worked up together and his blonde hair was messy from the movements. His arm flexed holding up his head, a vein was popped at the top of the skin pushing out from the broad muscles. Merlin followed Arthur's other hand down seeing the taught chest and stomach muscles curving shadows in the moonlight, down to his hips where his hard erection was springing back against his stomach. Merlin paused a moment looking at this, trying to understand why he loved this sight so much. Then he moved his gaze down to the prince's taught legs that had pinned him down so many times and held him up against that dresser. Merlin wanted to smile but found himself too sidetracked by his thumping heart. The prince's muscles were so intoxicating.

"Merlin?" Arthur asked. Merlin had not been moving at all, just staring.

He did not respond with words at Arthur catching him staring at his body. Instead he moved forward to the bed, jar in hand, and with a small push of his palm he moved Arthur onto his back. He then got back on the bed and straddled Arthur with his own legs smiling on the inside, thinking of Arthur doing this to him so many times. It _was_ enjoyable. He then did some quick math and took Arthur's left hand into his own and lifted it to his mouth, never breaking eye contact with the boy under him, he took Arthur's pointer and middle finger into his mouth lacing his tongue in and around his fingers teasing him. He let his teeth slide down onto the digits, warning him not to try and take them out, until he reached the nails. He then took the fingers back into his mouth again and continued teasing with his tongue. After a few moments of watching Arthur wriggle, he took away his hand, slightly biting into Arthur's fingers as a warning again, and started to open the jar in his other. He let Arthur's hand go from his mouth with a push from his tongue when started to have trouble opening the jar.

Arthur had not expected this move from Merlin. He groaned at the loss of warmth on his fingers and while Merlin was grabbing his other hand he moved his freed hand down in between Merlin's thighs finding the spot that had caused the need for him to get the jar of olive oil. Arthur thought that using olive oil was odd and wanted to see if saliva would work well enough. He hadn't even realized there was a midnight snack laid out for him.

Now there was one straddling him.

He turned his attention to finding Merlin's hole again and moved his finger back into position. The position they were in now made things more difficult as his hand had to move under the weight of Merlin. Merlin stared at him, pausing what he was doing with the oil and waited for Arthur to stop as he gave him a look that said, _'What do you think you're doing?'_.

Arthur would not stop. He gave Merlin a teasing glance and before Merlin could do anything Arthur put his newly wet pointer finger inside of him. It was much easier than before and Merlin didn't seem to bite down as hard. He moved his hand slowly for a few moments before Merlin's face changed back into a squint. He lifted his body up and Arthur took his hand away, slightly disappointed.

Merlin sat back down on top of him, finally getting the jar open, and with a look of annoyance towards Arthur he took his own hand and dipped it in the oil. He then took up Arthur's other hand and massaged the oil around his fingers. Arthur just looked up at Merlin with eyes that he hoped said, _'If you're sure'_. Merlin put the lid back on the jar and flipped himself over onto his back. Arthur pushed himself up and moved to the other side of Merlin, kissing him as he went, making sure he didn't spill the oil from his fingers.

Now on the other side of Merlin, Arthur poised himself on his left elbow and easily found Merlin's hole with his legs parted open, waiting. He massaged the spot with his middle finger but found it quickly went inside. He got a quick _'I told you so'_ look from Merlin making him move his finger at a faster pace than Merlin may have wanted. He moved until Merlin had relaxed around his finger. It made it easier to be able to slowly work inside of Merlin until he found a small bulge within him. He placed pressure on that bump knowing what it would do to him and how it would make things easier. Merlin, in response, let out a long sigh with the breath he had been holding in.

Arthur slowly curved his finger, putting more pressure on that sensitive spot, moving all the same. Merlin moaned slightly at the touch and Arthur sat up further so he could grasp Merlin's hand and move it to Merlin's cock willing him to touch himself and as Merlin did so he leaned back on his arm in its original position. Merlin closed his eyes and touched himself trying to match Arthur's movements. Arthur had to bite his lip, looking at the boy touching himself as he rubbed inside of him.

The oil was still on more of Arthur's fingers and so he decided it would be okay to place another finger inside of him. If things were going the way he wanted them to, and he hoped Merlin wanted them to too, then he would have to get used to it.

Arthur pulled his middle finger out so that it was almost all the way out of Merlin before placing his ring finger in next to it. Merlin breathed in at the new found pressure and squeezed with both hands, squeezing his own self. Arthur leaned forward and breathed into Merlin's ear.

"Shhhhhhh", he whispered before nibbling on the boy's earlobe. When Merlin started to stroke himself again, Arthur moved both fingers inside of him. With the help of correctly placed pressure on the lump of nerves within him, Merlin relaxed faster this time and Arthur moved faster in response. While biting and breathing into Merlin's ear he placed his pointer finger additionally within the wriggling boy beneath him. Merlin responded as he had before but bit down on his lip and took it, forcing himself to relax.

Merlin did not hate what was happening, he wanted it to happen but he couldn't say it was something he found comfortable. He was not used to objects in his body and his body was fighting his desires.

Arthur soon was able to move faster and faster until Merlin lost all sense of discomfort and bucked down into the boy's hand. Arthur smiled at the sight and looked towards Merlin, asking permission. Merlin felt Arthur looking at him and stared up and nodded.

Arthur kept his fingers in Merlin, working them slowly as he sat up and reached for the olive oil jar still in Merlin's hands. Merlin lifted it up before Arthur could reach it and opened the jar for him. Before Arthur could dip his hand in, Merlin did, covering himself. He then reached forward and lathered the oil on Arthur's cock sliding up and down, feeling how hard it had become.

Arthur bucked under the wet touch and moved his fingers faster inside of Merlin, flashes of desire curling through his system. Once Arthur's member was fully covered and gleaming in the moonlight Merlin placed the lid back on the jar and laid back. Arthur removed his fingers and looked up at Merlin to make sure he had no doubt. He found him smiling up at him as Merlin turned onto his side. Arthur followed suit and slid himself on his side behind Merlin. He positioned his erection over Merlin and the tip of his head slid against Merlin's newly opened hole.

Merlin thoughts were racing. He never thought this would happen. How could he? He could barely believe it now. He was just glad they were like this. He trusted his friend completely and was glad to make him happy in any way. Merlin was happy himself.

Arthur grabbed Merlin's cheeks and separated them with the pads of his thumbs. He then pushed the head of his cock against the hole opening before him. Pushing until his head was wrapped inside. He paused, waiting for Merlin to breath. This was absolutely bigger than Arthur's fingers and he knew it was something he had to get used to. Merlin was squinting and breathing heavily grabbing onto the bed sheets in front of him but was not screaming out yet. He bit down and nodded at Arthur without another word. Arthur could see this nod looking at Merlin and brought his arm up to his head to support him better and he slid in further very, very slowly. It was agony to have to push in so slowly. Merlin was warm and hugged tight around Arthur's aching member, waves of pleasure continuously teasing. It was hard to control himself from thrusting into the boy in front of him.

Merlin grunted and Arthur stopped. He paused until Merlin nodded and slid in slowly again. These motions repeated until Arthur was mostly all the way inside of him. He paused, waiting for Merlin to say it was okay and then he pulled back slightly. Merlin breathed out but wouldn't be relieved for too long as Arthur pushed back in again slowly and waited. Merlin was gripping the sheets around him continuously and groaning loudly between loud raspy breaths.

Arthur gripped onto Merlin's hip tighter making sure he wouldn't move too quickly and hurt himself. Merlin breathed in and out slowly again and so Arthur moved again still slowly and, even though Merlin grunted, he moved without a pause. Merlin continued to grunt but didn't say anything. Arthur controlled his pace and looked to slide against the lump that he knew would bring Merlin more pleasure than pain.

After a few more painful grunts from Merlin, Arthur took the hand that had been holding himself up and slid it through Merlin's hair tugging on it slightly. Merlin rocked back into his hand and let out a breath. Arthur then removed his hand from Merlin's hips, being careful to slow his movements and grabbed Merlin's member in his hand. He stroked him in the motion that matched his hips until Merlin's grunts turned into moans of pleasure. Arthur knew he found the bump within Merlin when the grunts became more like moaning whines. The sounds made it all the more harder for Arthur to keep his pace so he took his hand off of Merlin's member and moved it back to his hips so that he could get a better grip. Merlin's sounds of pleasure still continued and so Arthur quickened his pace, something he had been aching to do.

Merlin recognized the change once he got comfortable with the situation. At first it did hurt…a lot…and he did want to stop but he knew he would regret it if he did. He didn't know if this would happen again. His body was confused and couldn't seem to decide if it wanted to feel the pleasure or the pain. All there was, was pleasure at this point. He didn't mind Arthur's hand moving from him, though he missed the absence. He just concentrated on the feeling of Arthur moving inside of him. Merlin started to moan louder and louder as Arthur moved faster and faster and he found his own hips finally moving instead of being paralyzed like they were before.

Arthur stopped when Merlin started to move, afraid he wanted to stop. Merlin continued to move up and down on him and Arthur stayed there and took it. He just wanted to look at this boy moving on him, causing him so much pleasure. He moaned and looked until he couldn't take it anymore and moved back and forth into Merlin again, faster and faster until the sound of Merlin's moans were drowned out by the sounds of their bodies coming together and by his own heavy breathing.

Merlin couldn't decide what to hold on to anymore. Each movement caused his hands to grip and re-grip the bed all at different places. He moved his still-oily hand down to touch himself as Arthur moved inside him and let his other arm cross over Arthur to grab his thigh. Arthur lost it at this point and pounded into the boy, so much so that Merlin had to stop moving back against him. Merlin moaned as he stroked himself faster and faster feeling the pleasure coming from so many different places and he started to feel a pulling tingle of warmth coming from his toes and his waist.

"Arthur," Merlin breathed out, finding it hard to talk. "Arthur, Aur- I, I…" Merlin groaned loudly.

"Oh, Merlin-" Arthur groaned, continuing his fast athletic pace.

Merlin's name was all he needed before the tingling sensation spread out through to every part of himself and as he came out onto his hand and onto the bed as he screamed out, "Arthur!", and his nails bit tight into Arthur's leg with the overwhelming sensation.

Merlin's orgasm was enough for Arthur to do so himself as he felt Merlin's muscles contract and reform around his member inside of him. Arthur's own pleasurable sensations spread out through him and he had to stop pounding into the boy to experience everything.

"Merlin!" Merlin moved as much as he could up and down on his orgasming partner's member knowing that was what Arthur needed. He moved until Arthur's hand slowed him to a still. Arthur moved his hand around to Merlin's chest as Merlin took his hand from Arthur's thigh and placed it over Arthur's hand on his chest instead.

The boys laid silently breathing heavily.

Merlin took his hand from his sticky member and discretely wiped any remaining cum onto the bed sheet. He was sure he would have to wash it later anyway. Again. He laid there feeling Arthur pinned to his back and he kept thinking, not believing what had just happened. Not believing the rush it had been. Not believing that one drunken kiss was all they needed to break that barrier and explode on each other like that. Arthur had just been inside of him. They had just been together in a way he had never been with anyone. He leaned back into Arthur's embrace.

Arthur was staring at the back of Merlin's head. He had been so concentrated on what he was doing he hadn't really opened his eyes much during it. He ran his hand through Merlin's hair and laid his head against the back of it. He couldn't believe what had just happened either. He never considered this to be an actual possibility. He had never considered his feelings towards Merlin as something like this. He was so happy. He glanced at Merlin's naked back taking in the appropriate curves of lean muscle and sharp shoulders. He noticed Merlin had a small dark freckle placed on the edge of his shoulder and had a strong urge to caress it. Due to the fact that all of his hands were occupied he just nuzzled his head into the back of Merlin's neck instead. Only then did the thought occur to him that it would have been very easy to distract Merlin from his pain if he had bit him down there. _'Oh well, maybe next time.'_ That thought caused a pit to form in the prince's stomach. Could there be a next time? Arthur held Merlin closer.

After a few minutes, Merlin squeezed Arthur's hand and turned over to face him. Arthur removed himself from Merlin in the turn and held his arms out so Merlin would come into his embrace. Merlin wrapped himself up in Arthur and started to kiss him slowly. This was their first graceful kiss of the night. Everything else had been driven by heat and hormones but this was drawn from true trust, and friendship, and heartfelt emotion. Maybe also by the side effects of the orgasms.

Their bodies were still as their mouths moved and lips danced around each other. Arthur's stubble roughly scratched Merlin's upper lip and Merlin moved down to Arthur's bottom. They moved their lips out and in and up and down slowly letting their tongues glide against them. They kissed for a long time before either spoke.

Arthur thoughts had been driving him crazy and he had to ask Merlin. "Now what?"

Merlin hadn't heard the prince be unsure of himself often. This was one of those times. Merlin wasn't really sure either. He just knew he felt really tired after all of the pent-up emotion and energy he just spent. "Now, sleep," he ordered the prince.

Arthur laid back as Merlin pulled away, grabbing the olive oil bottle from behind a pillow it fell to in his earlier attempt to find something to grab and started to stand.

"Where are you going?" Arthur asked, worry in his voice. He didn't want him to leave so soon.

"To start the fire." Merlin responded reassuringly. He had started to feel the chill after he had walked form the bed and placed the jar on the table next to the bread though he was sure the prince would not eat it. At least not with that oil.

After the fire had re-started Merlin was able to see the room more clearly in the fiery glow.

He indeed had a mess to clean up. There were the fire irons spread all over, clothes, armor, pillows, moved chairs, a rocked dresser, and a bed that looked torn apart. He deiced to wait until tomorrow and climbed back onto the bed next to the prince who had gotten under its covers. Merlin slid in underneath too and stared at Arthur who was on his back with his eyes closed. He just stared at him. He was afraid if he went to sleep that he would wake up from a dream. If he woke up he would have to come back tomorrow pretending he didn't remember anything and he would have to act normal, just cleaning up after his prince. Merlin let his fingers move against Arthur's skin, circling them around his cheek and down to his jaw and lips.

"Go to sleep Merlin." Arthur said sleepily without opening his eyes. Merlin laid down with his head on Arthur's chest closing his eyes but the worry didn't leave him. He was too tired though and found himself slipping away.

Arthur wanted Merlin to sleep too but he wasn't sure he would be able to do so himself. He was worried. He opened his eyes staring at the canopy above his bed. He didn't know what to do. He knew this would not be accepted in any capacity. He was the prince. He could sleep with who he wanted to but to sleep with his manservant? He had heard of other princes who ordered their servants to do things of this nature but they were always women, he thought. Maybe they were just more discrete. Even so, he didn't want anyone to think he made Merlin do this. He knew people knowing about it couldn't lead to anything good. He started to pet the now snoring Merlin's hair as he thought it out. If his father found out then he would have Merlin executed. Arthur had never talked to Uther about boys who liked other boys but he thought he knew quite well how he would feel. Arthur wasn't even sure he liked boys, Merlin was just different.

No one could be told. Not even Gaius. Not that Merlin would tell him but still Gaius was loyal to the king. If he thought it started a problem, he would bring it up. Maybe not with Uther but maybe with Gwen or Morgana or with Arthur himself. Arthur wouldn't be able to face that and what if someone overheard? No. It was best no one knew.

Was it wise to do it again though? He knew he wanted to, so badly, but the more times they acted like this, the more obvious it would get. He had already been made fun of by the knights before for his need to always have Merlin by his side and with their constant flirting. He only now realized that it was indeed flirting. He had always said it was just because they were friends. That's just how they acted. If any of them got wind of this, they would have a field day and would most likely get Merlin in trouble. Merlin snored again and Arthur smiled. He decided to worry about it later and try and sleep or at least rest for now. He wasn't sure what he'd tell Merlin.


	7. Morning After

After a few hours Merlin awoke from a kick from Arthur. He gazed out and saw the fire had been slowly dying out and that the sun was soon to rise as the moon was near setting and the sky was getting brighter. He slipped out from under Arthur's outstretched arm and out from under the covers. The coldness of the room hit his naked body quite fast and he started searching the floor for his clothes. He found them scattered about the room but mostly near the fire, which he was grateful for as it was warmer over there. The only thing he couldn't find was his red scarf.

Along his way he picked up Arthur's clothes off the floor and threw them together in the basket near the dresser after re-piling the armor and clothes within it. He grabbed fresh clothes from the dresser and placed them on the table, fixing the dresser to its original position. He re-stoked the fire picking up the stool and the fire irons cautiously, not wanting to wake Arthur. In the fire's light he could clearly see all the new scratches and bruises covering his arms. He could only imagine what he would look like to other people, especially combined with his eye. In the process of cleaning the table and resetting the chairs he knocked one over onto its back, crashing it into the floor. He looked up sharply to see if he woke Arthur but when he turned he saw an already-awake Arthur staring at him with a look of concentration and something else that looked unsettling, maybe sadness.

Arthur was upset. He had woken up when Merlin did but was too tired to move or open his eyes. Instead he was left with his thoughts from the night before. He didn't know what to say. He didn't want to hurt Merlin but he had to make a decision. Merlin was just staring at him. They seemed to be in this habit of staring now.

"What's wrong Arthur?" Merlin brought the clothes over to the bed and waited as Arthur took them from him.

"Thank you Merlin," Arthur said taking the clothes and getting off from the other side of the bed. Merlin looked at him confused and a bit hurt at the cold gesture but just turned away, going back to straightening the room as Arthur got dressed.

"Will there be anything else?" Merlin asked, now mad at the silent Arthur. He turned to see him fully dressed leaning against the wall facing him. Arthur did not respond but just stared.

"Sit." Arthur used his commanding voice as he motioned to a chair near the table opposite from the side his chair was on. Merlin sat, annoyed and expecting. Arthur walked over but couldn't seem to look Merlin in the eye. Merlin could only think that it was out of disgust, getting him more upset and a bit more worried.

"We...Last night...I..." Arthur couldn't come up with the right words.

Merlin just sat and looked up at him expressionless. He did not get his hopes up at any moment and Arthur's words were just proving his thoughts. It was a mistake. He knew it. They both did so why did they do it? What could they blame it on?

"I won't tell anyone. If that's what you're worried about." Merlin said biting his words out. The prince turned the other way allowing Merlin to see a purple bruise that had formed on the side of his neck. He would mock him for it later but right now he did not feel like it.

"No, it's...well yes...yes." Arthur stopped and paced over to the window and looked out as he always did when he was troubled, hands laced behind his back.

Merlin stood and walked behind Arthur asking, "What?"

Arthur turned to try and come up with an answer but instead saw Merlin had snuck up very close to him, pinning him with his proximity, and that he was trapped from any sort of escape. He also saw the multiple bruises forming around the base and sides of Merlin's neck but they were not as dark as Merlin's eye, the mark Arthur had almost forgotten about. A new guilt ate at him and he stared at the floor.

"Tell me," Merlin said forcefully. If he was going to tell him off he might as well. There was no reason not to. It's not like he hadn't done it before. This shouldn't be any different.

Arthur breathed in deeply and met Merlin's eyes. "We can't tell anyone of what happened last night." Arthur thought of explaining further, about how he was prince about how no one would understand about how his father would execute him. "I'm prince...father would..." The words just didn't do his thoughts justice.

"I agree," Merlin said with all sincerity. He did not need an explanation. He could only imagine what Uther would do to him and Arthur. Not only would Uther be mad that Arthur slept with his manservant but the manservant who was a sorcerer? Unthinkable. A pang of guilt hit Merlin at the thought of the secret he kept form Arthur. He had wanted to tell him so many times. If anything there should be no secrets now.

"You do? Good...um..." Arthur was temporarily relieved at the agreement but knew there had to be more to come. "We can't...this can't happen again."

Merlin did not respond. He knew this was coming. He felt it. If it was up to him, they could do it. He'd kept a very large secret for a very long time, this couldn't be much harder. However he knew the prince hadn't been forced to keep a secret this big and so he had to be understanding. The thing was that Merlin didn't feel like being understanding. He just waited for Arthur to continue and in his pause thoughts crept up on him. Maybe it wasn't just out of duty. Maybe Arthur regretted it.

"Right...it's just...if someone found out...Merlin...you understand?" Words were especially hard for Arthur this morning. He had trouble meeting Merlin's gaze when Merlin looked so disappointed and angry. This was all added to the fact that Merlin looked like he was just beaten with a very large stick.

"Oh, I understand." Merlin responded tightly. He was hurting and he didn't want Arthur to see. He could honestly see Arthur was hurting too but their situation was too difficult for comfort. He could not go over there and hug him or even pat him on the back like he wanted to.

"I'm sorry Merlin." Arthur both sounded and felt completely defeated. He ran a hand through his hair and walked past Merlin, without looking at him, right over to the table and saw Merlin's red scarf under his chair. He bent down and picked it up playing with it in his hands, not really sure why he wanted to.

Merlin looked at the defeated prince and responded sincerely back more comfort in his voice, full of defeat himself. "I'm sorry too sire." The title seemed appropriate. If they had to reform their relationship because of it, they might as well get used to it.

Arthur swooped around and walked towards Merlin, a new hurt on his face. He looked at the scarf in his hands and started to fold it so that it had smooth edges again. All the while he did not look at Merlin.

"I thought I told you to call me Arthur." He looked Merlin in the eyes with a tiny sad smile as he held out his scarf.

"You remember that?" Merlin half smiled back reaching out for his scarf.

"I remember all of last night."

"Did you...does it...did it mean..." Now it was Merlin's turn for a lack of coherent words. "What happened last night. Did you wish it didn't happen? Do you regret it?" Merlin looked on at him, well, it was more through him. He didn't want to show him the hurt in his voice or the worry on his face.

" _Mer_ lin," Arthur used his pronunciation with a true smile on his face this time. "No. I enjoyed last night." He paused. "It was…confusing," Merlin nodded in agreement. "But I'm glad it happened."

"I'm glad it happened too." Merlin smiled at him as he put his scarf back on around his neck.

Arthur looked back at Merlin with a half-smile as he helped adjust the scarf so that it hid the maximum amount of bruises, ignoring the one one forming under his ear that could not be helped. He caressed the mark that could not be covered and then moved his fingers up to trace the bruise surrounding his eye. It did not look much better but it was improving. His smile went away again as he dropped his hands from Merlin and stepped back, realizing his touch.

"You understand why it can't happen again?" Arthur asked.

"Yes." Merlin said bitterly. "I do, I just wish it wasn't that way."

"Me too," Arthur said quietly. "We will just go back to the way things were. Like nothing's changed."

"Like nothing's changed?" Merlin didn't think it was possible.

"Yes Merlin. Don't be an idiot," Arthur said his voice annoyed but with a smile on his face. Idiot was something Arthur would call him if they were acting as they always did. Merlin just scowled at him playfully. Flirting was something they did before too.

"Yes sire," Merlin said knowing that the sire would bug Arthur. Two could play at this game. "I'll try." Arthur chuckled.

As painful as it was to walk away now, he knew he had to get back to Gaius before he thought he went missing. Merlin walked towards the door slowly looking around making sure he didn't leave another thing behind.

"Merlin." Merlin turned with a questioning expression. "Come here." Merlin walked over the prince who was now standing near his bed. The bed did not look the same to him anymore. It was full of memories now. Arthur grabbed the bread that was meant for the olive oil and handed it to Merlin. "I won't be eating this." Arthur paused and stared at the confused boy holding the bread.

Merlin waited a few more moments before asking, "Is that it?". Arthur was just staring at him. It was almost uncomfortable.

"Yes Merlin." Merlin turned to walk away. "Oh and Merlin-" Merlin started to turn, confused at the prince's behavior, but found himself almost falling over as Arthur grabbed him from his arm and whipped him around. Quick as a flash Arthur had him from behind his back and head as he placed messy, hungry kisses on Merlin's mouth. Merlin responded quickly, not even needing to think, by dropping the bread and moving his lips faster to match Arthur.

After a period which was too short of either boy, Merlin heard the sound of someone entering the corridor outside the hall. Arthur had heard it too and fear spread across his face as he took a step back. Merlin stared for a moment and both boys took that moment to catch their breath. Without words Merlin picked up the bread he dropped and faced Arthur. He noticed the jar of olive oil was still on the desk and made a motion towards it, clearing his voice to speak. "Would you like me to get that too?"

"No," Arthur said, his mind racing. He knew he said he would never let this happen again. He knew he shouldn't keep the oil but a part of him didn't want to let it go. Besides he just wanted to keep the oil for self-use. That was of course untrue and he knew it. "I'm keeping that here." A smile curved as he turned away from Merlin and placed the jar in a drawer.

Merlin gave him a cunning look as he understood what that gesture meant. He didn't think he could keep his hands off of him either. Turning away with that look he walked towards the door again.

"And Merlin!" Arthur yelled at Merlin when he had just stepped outside.

"Yes?" Merlin said poking his head through the door.

"I'll be needing breakfast."

Yup nothing had changed. Arthur was still a prat. Gaius was probably worried sick, Merlin hadn't eaten, he had barely any sleep and the prince still wanted his breakfast. Merlin rolled his eyes to the prince's back and walked down the hall contemplating giving Arthur the dirty bread for breakfast. Instead he decided to do what he would _normally_ always do and run home first and then feed the prince. Sure he'd be yelled at, but that was half the fun. Merlin walked back home with a large smile on his face and a semi-bright outlook on his intertwined destiny.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did in fact go back and edit this but holy mother of god was that bad writing/grammar. I mean it was the first thing I've ever written but you should know I've gotten better. Except for verb confusion. That will always be a bitch and a half. Anyway, it at least needs a twice over before it would be alright, alright being a strong word. It needs work. Work which I will probably not do. I can't linger or I'll never move forward. So, I'm afraid you'll have to live with it. I'm going to do Tempting next. Basically if it has a chapter title, it's been re-edited.
> 
> Sequels (as of now):  
> Whiskey's Effect  
> Tempting  
> Consequences  
> Part 4 (TBA)


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